Offspring
by SunGoddess7
Summary: PART IV IS UP!!! The story of Trinity and Neo's daughter and the choices she has to make...R&R!
1. Part I: Imprisonment

A/N: I've been having a lot of thoughts of what it might be like if Neo and Trinity had a kid, so here's my take on what it might be. No, I don't own any of the Matrix characters except for Scrylla, Sticks, Doc, Prait, Notton, and Carmen. I don't own the idea or the concept of the Matrix. So, sit back and enjoy the show!

****

Offspring, by SunGoddess7

Part I: Imprisonment

I am one of the few people I know who has been born in the real world. 

I suppose I should get some kind of pride out of this, but really I'm quite ashamed to be born into a world so ugly, desecrated, and utterly evil. Humans are grown just to feed the machines and other humans that are cultivated for energy. 

Perhaps I should explain. Unless you have been unplugged -- or freed -- like my mother, father, and other members of the ship, you live in a world that does not exist. Anything you have come to know and love is not real. It is a computer program designed to keep you in line and under Their control. This computer program is known as the Matrix.

Hits you like a cold slap in the face, huh?

There are only so many people who know this startling truth, and most were part of the Matrix themselves at one point. Only a precious few were born in Zion, one of the few cities remaining. Tank, our operator, was born in Zion, but my mother told me in a hushed voice that Tank had a brother who was born in Zion as well. That brother was killed by a traitor. 

I didn't know either of them. The Nebuchadnezzar used the have five more members; their names I only recently learned. Morpheus himself told me about the ship's former crew and their grisly past. 

A boy only a few years older than me named Mouse was once part of the crew. Daddy tells me I would have liked him. I will never know. He was killed by Agents.

A woman named Switch was part of the team, but the traitor killed her. He unplugged her before she was back. Apoc, a man, was killed in the same fashion. 

Morpheus seemed to have the most trouble talking about the traitor, Cypher. My mother gave Morpheus all of the information of what he did, but she didn't tell me herself. She had Morpheus do it. 

Cypher was released but couldn't take it. He made a deal with the Agents, which in return would have given them my father, and Morpheus as well. Tank killed Cypher after he shot Tank's brother, Dozer, with a laser gun. 

The Agents wanted my father because he is the One. My father, Neo, is the only one who can kill an Agent and save the human race from the machines. My quiet, dark-haired father is one hundred million times more important that anyone on our ship. Combined.

My mother, Trinity, was part of the prophecy that the Oracle foretold. The Oracle said she would fall in love with a dead man who would be the One. Apparently things worked out because here I am. Me. Athene.

I find it ironic that Mother and Daddy named me after the Greek goddess of skill and intelligence. I find I possess neither of those qualities, yet Morpheus and Tank constantly marvel at how easily I caught on to the Matrix code. I was only eight when I finally made Tank tell me the codes to Zion. Daddy told me the Matrix codes at ten. 

I remember the look he gave me the day he told me, and I relayed it back to him perfectly. There was a look of almost pride in his eyes, mixed with incredible knowing. He was smiling benignly. Being so young, my only reaction was to give him a hug for telling me, wrapping my arms around his middle. He hugged me back and I felt good that I had made him happy. Only now do I realize the significance of what I had learned.

Now I work with Tank, absorbing everything he will tell me about the Matrix, wanting desperately to go in, but knowing I will never be able to. I was never hooked up.

Not that I want holes all over my body and on my neck. That would be miserable. I can't help but flinch every time I see a plug emerge from under a sleeve. But I want to fight, to help my parents.

I can understand why they wouldn't want me to go. They're afraid I might be killed, which is a very real possibility, but if I stay with Daddy I'll be safe. He moves like the lightning that streaks through the seething, molten-gray skies. I can't help but gaze in awe every time I watch him fight in the programs. Tank patches it through onto the monitor for the rest of us to watch.

My mother moves with a liquid grace I deeply envy. When I move, I feel nothing. It's just my brain telling me to move my arm or leg. But with my mother, it's like an art form. I hope that if somehow I ever get into the Matrix, I'll be able to move like them.

I'm thirteen years of age, but the war still ages on. So far, we've only been able to free smaller and very desolate places. Tundra and deserts and small cities. We've gained six people so far. Scrylla, Sticks, Doc, Prait, Notton, and Carmen have replaced the five we lost. Space is limited on the ship, but Morpheus hardly sleeps, so when he isn't asleep, someone always uses his room. My parents now share a room, and I have my father's old room. It's the smallest one of the ship, but I don't mind. It gives me a private space to write and think and dream of seeing what it's like in the Matrix.

Now, I lay quietly on my stomach, my head cradled in my arms as I try and drift off to sleep, but it's almost impossible. In the room next door where my parents sleep, Mother and Morpheus are arguing. I lift my head slightly to hear better. 

"She's too young, Morpheus. I don't want her killed like Mouse. She's all Neo and I have."

"You know she inherited some of Neo's genes, meaning she has some of the Gift. We need to get her a plug so she can help us fight."

A deep silence. My mother sounds as if she's close to tears. "No. I won't let her be killed by Agents because you fill her head with things that make her think she can do what Neo can." 

"I would never do that, Trinity. I will tell her what she is capable of, but I would never want to see Athene killed. She is precious to all of us."

"If she's so precious, Morpheus, why do you want to risk the chance of her dying?" My mother asked in a poisonous voice. 

"I can't tell you what to do, Trinity. I can only tell you what you should consider. She might be what we need to defeat them. Wouldn't you rather know that because you let her go out in the Matrix to defeat the machines than to know that it was you who kept her in this ship and let the war go on?"

She sighed. "It's late. I'm going to bed."

"You can't run from this, Trinity. You can't protect her forever."

"Morpheus, leave." Her tone was strong and forceful. 

I suddenly felt eyes on me. Looking over to my door, I saw Daddy standing there, leaning against the frame. He walked in and squatted next to my mattress. I gave him a look of questioning. He pressed his lips together and nodded, looking down. I sighed and turned my head from him to look at the wall in front of me. He reached out and rubbed my back. He hadn't done this since I was a little girl, told of the truth of what was going on. I knew something was definitely wrong if he was doing this. 

I propped myself up onto my elbow, facing him. "Why can't I go?" I asked simply and quietly. He merely shook his head. I sighed, giving him an angry look before turning away from him. He bent down to kiss me good night, but I shriveled away from him. I imagined that he looked hurt, but at this point I didn't care. I just wanted him to go. 

Later on, I could hear Mother and Daddy talking about it. Their voices were muffled as opposed to the earlier fight, as the door was shut and they talked in hushed voices. I could only pick out a few words, but otherwise it was as if they were keeping it from me. I finally drifted off, dreaming of a world where the sky was blue and there was ground, like the stories Mother told me when I was little. I tried to imagine the creatures she told me about and how there were people all over the place. It was hard to imagine, as I had only known ten people for my entire life. 

I woke up the next morning, my black hair falling all over my face. I looked at myself in the shiniest piece of metal in the room, trying to comb it out of my face, rubbing my dark brown eyes. Unlike my mother, I preferred to wear my hair long and free, pulling it back with strips of cloth. I walked out to see Carmen already standing around, holding a tin cup and sipping absentmindedly. She finally noticed me, putting the cup down and smiling at me. "Morning, sunshine." I smiled at her, feeling a little confused. I had never seen sunshine before, so I didn't know what to think. Her smile faded. "Sorry, I forgot." She mumbled a bit embarrassedly. I shrugged. 

"It's okay. Most do."

She nodded and walked off toward the bridge. I headed toward the back to get some food. My stomach was rumbling and I was craving nourishment. Sloshing the slop into my bowl, I ate it readily, not even realizing that Notton was sitting there. He was staring at me, his jaw opened, spoon almost in his mouth. "How can you eat that shit like it's a fucking cuisine?" He asked. 

"It's all I've ever known." I said, wolfing it down. 

Frowning, he went back to his food, making faces with every bite. I couldn't help but laugh a little. Of course, he probably laughed at me behind my back for never knowing about the world around me. I only knew what the world was like now, and not what it was like long before I was around. 

Mother walked in, her hair dishelmed and her eyes wild. I looked up and smiled at her. "Hi, Mother." I said casually as she got her food and sat down across from me. "So, have you made up your mind?" 

Her eyes instantly darted up from the food to me. "How did you--oh." Her voice went from surprised to deep and annoyed in a matter of seconds. "You were eavesdropping again." I looked down guiltily, nodding. She sighed, putting her spoon down. "Athene, I don't know what to decide. You know I don't want you out there. It's so dangerous, and the Agents..." she drifted off without finishing the sentence. There was no need.

Apparently Notton felt quite awkward, so he got up and left, leaving his bowl on the stand near the door. 

"Mother, you know I need to fight. You have been fighting for more than thirteen years now, and even with Daddy you haven't won yet. You heard Morpheus; I may be the one who decides whether we achieve victory or defeat."

She had picked up her spoon and began eating, but now she threw it down where it clattered noisily against the sides of the metal bowl. I nearly jumped in surprise. 

"See? See what he's done? It's already begun! Athene, I'm not saying you couldn't help, but look what he's done! He's filling your head with reckless ideas that could end up getting you killed."

"Mom, Doc has the stuff to get me plugged in. All I need is the hole in my neck and I'm in. Please, I have never known any other place than the ship. I'm starting to feel trapped. You say that the people in the Matrix who haven't been freed are in a mental prison, but I feel like I'm in a real prison. You have to let me fight."

"Doc's only been working sickbay for six months. There's no way he has all of the bugs fixed. What if you get permanently stuck in the Matrix? Or if something happens while you're being transferred? I could never forgive myself."

"Are you even considering it? Or have you closed your mind off to the idea just as you are closing me off from a real life away from the ship?" 

"You know that's not true!" She exclaimed. 

I snorted unpleasantly. "Sure." Standing up, I slam my bowl into the pile that was stacking up, and stormed out of the room, leaving my mother to dine alone. 

Tears were pricking behind my eyes, threatening to overflow. I sniffed them back, staring at the floor as I angrily made my way for the front of the ship when I ran right into someone. Looking up, I saw Daddy. Tears had leaked through and I hastily wiped them away. He reached down and held my face up so as to look at my face, even though I'm only a few inches shorter than him. 

"What's wrong?" He asked, concern etched into every feature.

"Nothing." I said quickly, wanting to get away as quickly as possible, but he still keept me there.

"You're not crying for nothing." He says softly. 

I sighed as I had the night before. "I just fought with Mom a little, that's all." I said, walking away. 

"About the Matrix?" He called after me. I stood in place. Turning on my heel I faced him once more. 

"What do you think I should do, Dad? Do you want me to stay in this godforsaken hunk of metal for the rest of my life, knowing that I could be out there, helping you and mom and Morpheus and every body else?"

It was his turn to sigh, but this wasn't of exasperation. This one was because of having to speak his mind, no matter what his wife might say later. 

He crossed the space so he was standing right in front of me. Whispering, he said, "I want you to go, Athene. I know you could help. But at the same time, I don't want you to leave the safety of these walls. There are so many ways you could die out there. The Agents would be desperate to get their hands on you because you're my child." I looked down. I hadn't thought about that.   


"But you want me go."

He nodded, a small smile curling the corners of his lips. I hugged him. "Thanks, Dad." And then I continued for the bridge, hoping to find Morpheus and tell him what Dad had said. 

I found him not on the bridge, but in his room. Not sleeping of course, but he looked as if he were deep in thought. I stood unnoticed at the doorframe of his room. I cleared my throat and he looked up from his inquisitive pose. His face broke into a smile. "Athene. I haven't seen you around lately."

"Can't imagine why. I've only been on this ship for the past thirteen years." I say softly, not trying to sound like a smartass. He knew I was kidding, and his smile widened.

"So, I guess you've heard," It wasn't a question.

I nodded. "I want to go, you know. More than anything in the world I want to help the Resistance. There are so few of us..." I end wistfully, putting passion into every word. 

He took a deep breath. "I want you go to, Athene. You have your father in you, and I know you would be a valuable member. It's Trinity though. She never gives up, which is a wonderful quality, under different circumstances, mind you. She will fight this until either she finally understands the neediness of this or until Neo tells her, though that will take even longer. We need to convince her while there's still time."

"I can take it, you know. Whatever it is that you need me to do, I will have it done." I stated, moving further into the room. 

"I know, and that's the problem. You won't consider the risks, and that's why your mother won't let you go."

"Dammit, Morpheus! That's the whole point of being in the Resistance; you do everything you can for the team, no matter the consequences!"

"You don't normally curse..." He was changing the subject.

"Only when I really believe in something," I shoot back. 

He sighed, making him look far older than usual. He waved a hand at the door. "Go. I need to think."

"You can't hold this off forever, Morpheus. You said the same thing to my mother, and now I'm telling you now. If you won't have me do it, I'll make Tank or Doc or someone do it for me, with or without your consent," I threatened.

He smiled again. "I know you'll be great." He waved a final time at the door, and I walked out. 

Things were so confusing. I walked down to where Scrylla's console sat. She now watched the Matrix, the green letters falling down the screen while certain symbols lit up as they fell. She stared into the infinite depths, now able to decode it with my father's help. 

This time I wasn't ignored. She instantly recognized my presence. She had flaming red hair that was very short, as she had been one of our most recent releases. She smiled at me and bobbed her head up in a way of greeting before turning back to the screen. 

"Seen anything unusual?" I ask, plopping down into one of the chairs. 

She shook her head. "Same as usual. My eyes are starting to hurt though." She turned and grinned. I half-smiled back at her. 

"So they want you to go in, don't they?"

"Does everyone know about our family crisis now?" I ask, slightly annoyed. 

"Everyone but Tank, but he's always oblivious. Notton told me. Apparently he was present for the mother-daughter conflict at the breakfast table." She gave me a cautious glance out of the corner of her eye. 

I looked away. People were so nosy, but what else are you going to do on a ship with no destination?

"Yeah, he was there. Up and left though. Too much emotion for him."

She nodded. "I would have left too, but out of courtesy and privacy, mind you."

"Of course," I said in my most normal voice, trying to filter out the doubt that would have poured fourth had it been anyone else. But Scrylla was new and still adjusting. Everyone was nice to her because we didn't want her to be upset with us. So far, she was great at working the console, and was an excellent combatant from what I heard. Shot with the best accuracy of us all. 

I grabbed a tin cup that was resting next to her and took a swig. The minute it hit my lips Scrylla realized what was going on and cried out, "No, Athene, don't drink that!"

Too late. It tasted awful. I spit it out away from the computers, gagging and gasping for air. "What was that stuff?" I ask, wiping my lips. She grinned evilly.

"The only stuff that connects me to what I used to know," She grabbed the cup from me and drank deeply, smacking her lips together after word and letting out a huge sigh. I shuddered. 

I stood up, not knowing what else to do. I could try some code breaking on an unused computer, but that was little kid stuff. I did that at five to amuse myself. I found myself heading over to Tank's place. Sprawled before his console were ten chairs arranged in a semicircle. We always had extras, in case we picked up any more freed people. I ran a hand longingly along one of the chairs, wishing I could go and learn and fight for my race. Tank came up behind me. 

"You get used to it."

I turned around, a confused look upon my face. 

"To staying behind. You get used to it."

"Not if you don't have anything to do. Not if you're a useless person who just can't be hooked up. At least you have to be Operator; I just hang around like a dead CPU." I say bitterly.

"You aren't useless," He said, staring down at me. "You're a huge help around the ship. You understand the Matrix more than most of us. Not to mention your Neo's kid," he said with a smile. 

I couldn't help but roll my eyes. This is how I was always seen: as Neo's kid, or as Trinity's kid. Even if I were twenty-one, -- God forbid I live that long -- I'll still be seen as their kid. How lame!

"Would you let me be plugged?" I asked, not looking at him. 

"Yes.," He answered in a heartbeat. I merely nodded in acknowledgment. Almost everyone on the ship wanted me go to but mother. She was so stubborn! I had to convince her, to tell her I'd be okay...

That night, when Mother and Daddy were settling in for the night, I walked into their room. Daddy watched me with a look of confusion, while Mother with a look of apprehension. I crossed the room to stand before her, then kneeling to my feet. It only took a few steps. I stared her in the eyes, and then spoke the speech that had been stewing in my head for the whole day. 

"Mom, I can't tell what to do. I can only tell you what's in my heart. And right now, what's in my heart, is fighting for our cause. I know that I can help in at least some small way, and even if it's not much, I want to be with you and Daddy. I always feel like a third wheel around everyone because I hardly do anything but hang around. I want to see the world before it was destroyed; made into the horrible place it is now. But most of all, I want to fight." I took a breath, staring her in the eyes still, never breaking my gaze. She held it as well, hardly blinking. "Please," I whispered, not knowing what else to see. I pleaded with her with my eyes, trying to make her see just how much I needed this.

She pursed her lips, then licked them. Finally, she nodded. Her eyes carried a heavy, irreversible sadness, but she had nodded. A slow smile curled my lips. I hardly ever smiled, but I smiled now, and hugged her. "Thank you," I whispered in her ear. Opening my eyes, I saw Daddy over her shoulder, his eyes twinkling as he watched me. He gave a slight nod of approval, and I suddenly felt warm all over. I always felt good when I pleased him, for some reason. I pulled back, grinning as widely as ever. "I have to tell Morpheus!" I exclaimed, tearing from the room.

I had always viewed Morpheus like an uncle, as I didn't have a real one, or at least one that I knew. Running down the hall, he was sitting at the front of the ship, steering. 

"Morpheus!" I panted. "Morpheus, she said yes! I can go! She said yes!"

He turned and then hugged me. He hardly ever connected with the crew like this, but I was usually the exception, just because I was the only kid born on the ship. Oh well, it was nice. I pulled back, still grinning. "So when do I get my hole?" I asked, feeling almost giddy. 

He smiled, but shook his head. "Not for a little while. I need to talk to Doc and see if he really is ready. You know how he is; all talk, little show. But I believe he can do this.," He was still smiling. I felt my face fall a little. He placed a hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry. You'll have it soon enough. Just have patience." I nodded, smiling full force again. I tore off for my room, but I was too wide-awake to sleep now. I lay on my back on the mattress; my eyes wide open, studying the ceiling, counting the bolts that held the metal above me. I was still grinning.

But it suddenly hit me what I was about to do. A hole was about to be put right at the base of my head, in the back of my neck. I instinctively put a hand to that point, subconsciously wincing. I hoped they would have me deep, deep asleep for this procedure. I definitely did not want to be awake. Still, I would finally have a chance to get out of the ship, to leave, to be free. I could hardly wait. 

By morning, everyone had heard about my being hooked up soon. Everyone was always giving me encouraging smiles, and patting me on the back. I didn't mind the fact that they were happy for me to go, but I didn't like all of the extra attention. I wanted them to go back to treating me like they used to. 

Two days after I talked to Morpheus I was sent to see Doc. Walking towards the very back of the ship, he sat toiling away at some tools and implements on a table, examining them closely with both his eyes and a microscope. He immediately stopped when I entered the room. Turning, he gave me a huge grin. We didn't have much of a uniform code on here, but Doc had a small red cross on the right side of his chest, just below the shoulder. 

"So, ready to get your hole?"

I blanched. "You mean, you're administering it today?"

"No, no! Of course not! I'm just joking with you!" He chuckled. He was one of the oldest members on the ship. People were never released over the age of sixty, and Doc was fifty-five. He was the oldest member of our ship, and we had picked him up several years ago, when we were still rebuilding the crew. Being a resident of Zion and working as a medical advisor, we decided we needed him to replace Dozer. No one else had much experience in the way of medicine. We all respected him greatly, but not half as much as we respected Morpheus. 

He patted the metal table, still smiling. "Hop on up, dear. Gotta give you a check over before we plug you in."

Turning with my back to the table, I push myself up so my legs dangle over the side. The metal is freezing cold; pressing against the skin that was exposed by holes in my clothing. I shivered involuntarily. He chuckled, his smile fading slightly as he got to work. He pulled out, if I remembered correctly from the various other check ups that Doc gave me, a stethoscope, putting two of the three prongs in his ears, while the third, rounder end he pressed against my chest. "Breathe in deeply for me.," He said. Feeling confused, I did what he said. With each breath, the placing of the silver metal changed. Then he did my back. 

"Well, no irregularities there. Let's move on."

He pulled out another long metal thing, a thermometer, I think. He placed it in my mouth, under my tongue, leaving it there for several minutes before taking it out. Checking it, he made a noise that sounded like "Mmhm," while writing something down on a piece of paper. He proceeded to whack my knees and ankles with a small, hammer-like thing, and then made my eyes follow a light. I felt quite stupid throughout the entire thing, and it took all my energy not to burst out laughing as I swiveled my eyes around to follow the small bulb. Then, he made me do the stupidest thing of all. I had to walk across the room in several different fashions, on my tippy-toes as he called it, on my heels, and then as if I were on a thing called a tightrope. I looked at him, puzzled. 

"Oh yes. Sorry, I forgot. Just uh, walk putting your heel to the toes of the leading foot." I nodded, understanding now. I did all of this, and he wrote it down. I felt as if an hour of my life had just been taken away. 

**** __

'Oh well, at least it gave me something to do,' I thought, still feeling foolish. 

Finally, he made me stand on a scale, weighing me. Then, I stood against a wall and he used an old tape measure to measure my height. Recording all of this, he took several minutes to study his notes. Finally, he looked up and smiled at me. "You check out great. I think you'll make a great asset to the team. Welcome aboard." He reached out and shook my hand. I suddenly felt accepted, as if I had never been really part of the crew until now. I couldn't stop the smile that was dawning on my face. It felt good to smile, as I had done so little of it in the past years. I exited feeling more hopeful that ever. I stopped at the door, and then turned around. 

"How long do you think it will take before I can actually get hooked up?"

He leaned back in his chair, looking thoughtful. "If your mother allows it, tomorrow."

I could feel my jaw dropping slightly. I nodded, and ran. I ran to the food room. Sticks was already sitting there, his brown hair standing up all over the place. He had apparently abandoned the use of a comb years ago; so now it just grew all of it's own accord. A fairly well built guy from working on the ship, he sat hunched over his bowl of food, scooping it into his mouth.

"Hey," He said through a mouthful of slop. "So, how does it feel to be part of the team?"

I sighed a tired sigh. He laughed. "You'll get used to it. A couple hours of uploading should do you in. Trust me, it's a doozy."

I nodded, having never really considered the actual training. I had only thought about the actual Matrix and defeating the Agents. 

Finishing the last of his food by pouring it into his mouth, he slapped me on the back, wiping his mouth with his sleeve. Walking out, I was left alone, but this time I didn't go anywhere. I just sat in my seat, thinking. What would the uploading be like? Everyone said the first five minutes were the most painful, but then it's like you crave it, and just want more. 

I had watched people on the monitor: the jump, the training. And now it would be my turn. Did I really think I could handle all of that pain this young? Was I that foolhardy?

I shook my head. No, Athene. Don't do this; you're talking yourself out of what you want more than anything. Just stop.

I took a deep breath, as if trying to ease a pain that was already eating away at me. I headed back to my chamber with a small, hand-held computer. 

__

'Maybe I'll do some hacking just to entertain myself,' I considered. I typed with my two main fingers on my right hand, holding the thing steady in my left, getting into the Matrix mainframe and probing the information. There was hardly anything new. A few walls had been switched around due to previous missions we had administered, but otherwise it was still all the same. I sat the device on the floor, rolling onto my back and sighing, yearning for when I could finally get plugged in. It would at least give me something to do. I issued a sound from the back of my throat in frustration, not knowing what else to do. How had I lived like this for _thirteen years_? 

I felt like a trapped animal. I literally felt like clawing at the walls, trying to free myself from this prison. I was considering going to the front of the ship, taking hold, and taking us down to Zion, just to be able to walk around a new place, see something, hear something, feel something new. Zion was a mere shell of her former self, and it wasn't that great a sight, but it was better than this godforsaken ship that I was now bone weary of. I hated every bolt, every strip of metal that held her together, because every bolt and every strip of metal was what was detaining me from a real life. Now I hated the Machines. It was them. They were the reason I was kept here, waiting for my release, though if I were to look at it from the point of view of someone who's been plugged in, for my capture. I was going into a world where people were kept on a farm and used as pawns in a game so much greater than them, they'd probably rather die than know the truth. But if they would open their minds to the freeing truth, we could destroy Them. There would be too many of us, if we got our hands on the right equipment, for them to stop us. We would gain control of the world again, though it would be almost impossible to live as the human race did years ago. Humans killed the sun in an effort to stop them, and we need sun to survive. Perhaps, with technology taken from the Machines, we could find a planet that could house us. Mars maybe, or Io, one of the moons from Jupiter. We would find a way to thrive once more. 

I had to get out of here. It wasn't a question or a request. It was a demand. I jumped from my bed and strode purposely for Doc's medical wing. I found him bent over several pieces of paper attached to a makeshift clipboard, while simultaneously consulting his computer. 

"Doc," I called out, making him snap his head over my way. "I want to be plugged in."

He gave me an appraising look. "Tomorrow. We'll start tomorrow. But first, let me be so I can finish the program." He ended with a wink. I could feel myself getting even more anxious.

How was I going to wait until tomorrow? 

It was easier than I had first feared, although when it finally came I wished I had just waited. 

Running back to my room to try and calm my nerves, I pulled out an old and tattered thing called a 'book'. Tank had gotten it in Zion, one of the few of its kind left. It was his special gift to me for one of my birthdays. It was called 'The Odyssey' and it was written by a man who lived an extremely long time ago named Homer. It was quite engaging, really, though some of what they were saying was lost on me. No one talked like that any more, and sometimes, when my pride would let me, I would ask either Morpheus or Tank what it meant. Usually it would be Morpheus. Soon enough the ancient chatter had made my eyelids droop and I fell asleep, not even dreaming.

When I finally awoke, it was because I was being shaken. Scrylla was shaking me roughly, her flaming hair the first thing I saw before she finally blurred into focus. 

"It's time.," She said, a smile curling her lips slightly.

This woke me up. I jumped up, wrapping my fingers around my hair and smoothing it out behind my head. I followed Scrylla's quick steps as we went to the Sickbay. Morpheus, Mom, Daddy, and Doc were already there, waiting.

"Are you ready?" He asked softly, and I nodded. He patted the table again, only this time it was in a slightly somber way. "Lay down." He turned around and returned with a sharp needle-like implement in his hand. "I'm going to insert this in you and it's going to make you fall into a very deep, deep sleep. You'll also be quite numb so as not to feel too much pain. By the time you wake up, we should be done. Okay?" 

I licked my lips slowly, and nodded. He depressed one end of the barrel, causing a liquid to shoot out the needle end. Lifting the sleeve of my arm, he plunged the needle into my upper arm, making me cry out. Pulling it out, my arm felt as if it had fallen asleep, and I was not far behind. Almost immediately, my eyes felt as if lead was implanted in them. Things blurred together, until the last thing I saw was a giant light behind pulled over my head, and then passing out.

Sometime later, I came to, the giant light blinding me again. I could feel something going on in my neck, like pain but not quite, as if from a far away place. My father's face swam in and out of vision, leaning in close to me, smoothing my hair away from my face. 

"Soon.," Was all he said, and the words echoed in my head before all went black again.

When I finally came back again, I was in my room as if nothing had happened and the whole procedure was just a dream. I was lying on my stomach, my neck and shoulders aching. With a slight moan, I reached behind my head to rub my neck, but as soon as my fingers brushed skin I pulled it back, my eyes widening, a sudden jolt rushing through my body, because what I had brushed was not skin. 

Swallowing hard, I reached back again. This time, I left my fingers there, despite the slight pain that I felt with the depression of fingers against such a tender spot. 

It felt like a plastic-metallic circle at the nape of my neck. The outer ring was about three fourths of an inch thick, while the inner ring was very thin and metallic. The metal was cold to the touch, and it made me shiver. Not from the icy bite that had nipped my fingers, but realizing that I now had a hole the size of a penny in the back of my neck. And it hurt like heck.

I slowly sat up, feeling somehow disfigured. My hair fell down over it easily, tickling the hole and sending slight sparks of pain. I grabbed a piece of cloth and pulled my hair into a bun, keeping the new addition away from anything that might agitate it. Feeling again, I felt that there was a small, two inch wide radius of hair shaved off, my scalp quite evident, and I imagined a small semi-circle cut into my hair as it was pulled tight into the loose twist that I now wore higher than usual. 

Now staying as clear of the 'wound' as possible, I rubbed my shoulders, trying to rid them of the aching feeling. I slowly walked out of my room, a slight wobbling to my movement. Prait was in the hallway, talking with Tank. Both turned to me at the same time, but said nothing. Just gave me a glance over, staying silent. Tank had a whisper of a smile on his lips, and Prait was looking slightly sick. I could understand that. I was feeling slightly sick myself. 

"How're you doing?" Asked Tank, walking over. 

I merely nodded, not trusting myself with words at the moment. 

"Did Doc tell you how long it might be before you can get plugged in?" Prait asked in a quiet voice. 

I shrugged. He really hadn't said anything about that, come to think of it. I'd have to ask him. I started making my way for that way, but Tank stopped me. 

"He's in his quarters. He hadn't slept in twenty-six hours, your procedure took so long." I stopped, and turned around, starting to head for the Dorms, as many referred to it. Through my slight haze I counted the doors along the wall. _Five...six...seven._ I knocked tentatively on the door. No answer.

"He needs sleep, Athene. It's best to leave him alone until he has had some," Came a voice from behind.

Morpheus stood behind me, resting his hand on my shoulder. I slowly turned around. 

"How long before I can be plugged in?" I asked, the words tumbling out before I could think of a more subtle way of asking.

He looked me up and down, giving me another appraising look. "Now, if you feel up to it. Just make sure your mother doesn't know until it's too late." He smiled a slight smile. I smiled faintly at him and nodded vigorously, though the effort made pain shoot up and down my back and I stopped abruptly. I felt as if I would never need to sleep again.

"Come then.," He said, turning and heading for the core, quickly whispering to Tank, who cursed aloud, but whispered something back. They had a quick, two-minute conversation before Tank, wearing a large grin on his face, joined Morpheus and me. 

Finally getting to the wing, Tank flopped into his well-worn chair before the console, lacing his fingers and turning them out, cracking them before he started to work tapping and punching out codes with amazing speed and accuracy upon the keyboard. He suddenly stopped. "I need someone to assist," He said urgently. Flicking his eyes at Morpheus, he jumped up and ran off, quickly returning with Prait, who was wearing a similar dopey grin. Sitting back before his space once more, he became almost invisible behind the piles of monitors and CPU's. I sat down up on one of the reclined chairs across from Morpheus, who paced slightly before me, my back raised from the almost flat position that the chairs usually rested in. Prait put a hand on my collarbone and pushed me back gently until I lying down, eyes flicking around the room nervously, though his smile never faltered. 

"This is going to feel...a little weird," he said. I furrowed my brows slightly, resting my head down, as Prait bent down to get something, though it was hidden from my sight. Suddenly, a feeling like the icicles my mother had told me about being shoved right into the new hole in the back of my neck burst into my system, making my cry out in pain. No sooner had the sound left my lips than I was in a white room, where the walls connected with the ceiling and floor almost seamlessly, making as if I were in a giant white sphere. Suddenly, the white room was gone and images were flashing in quite rapid succession across my eyelids, making them flutter, but not open enough to be back in the real world. Men in white suits kicked, punched, jumped and seemed to fly everywhere, and while they did this, all of it, every action, was imprinted upon my mind, though the pain was excruciating. I yelled some more, and it stopped as soon as soon as it had started. 

"You okay?" asked Tank. 

Gasping for air as if I had been holding my breath the entire time, I nodded, unable to speak. Tank grinned again, and it all started up once more.

It continued again, the men in white suddenly jumping out at me, though never actually hitting me until it suddenly stopped. Though I had been going for five hours straight, it was such an abrupt stop it took me by surprise. I squeezed my eyes shut, blocking out everything, and then flew them open. I was back on the ship again, Morpheus and Prait watching me with scrutinizing eyes. My breathing was labored, but I was suffocating as I had been before. Morpheus turned to the panel.

"Are you finished? Is that all?"

Unable to see from my spot lying down, I assumed Tank had nodded because Morpheus turned back to me. "Do you want to go directly into sparring?"

I waited a few minutes, sizing him up. He was far larger than me, but something in the back of my mind told me I could take him. I suppressed a smile, and nodded. Morpheus grinned, although his wasn't as half as dopey as everyone else's. It was a superior smile, as if he knew something I didn't. Still grinning, he backed up and laid down in one of the chairs. Prait walked over, putting the cuffs over his and feet, inserting the metallic rod and suddenly Morpheus was, mentally, gone. Walking over, Prait repeated the process with me. I couldn't help yelling out again. It hurt so bad!

But no sooner did I yell was I in a different place again, this time a room with a springy floor, and very thin, paper walls that were cut into squares by the pattern that the wooden beams made. I looked down. I was cloaked in a rich, blue, robe-like shirt, with loose fitting pants of the same color, trimmed in a deep green. Somehow, something told me what to do. I pulled my legs apart in some kind of stance, I wasn't sure which, and parted my arms into a fighting stance. Morpheus merely stood there, his hands folded over the other, glancing knowingly at me. 

"The niceties must be observed first. Didn't you pick that up in the Uploading?"

Oh. Duh. I copied Morpheus' stance, my legs locked together and hands folded over the other. Morpheus bowed, and I did also, though not as deeply as he did. Now, he pulled back into a fighting stance and I mirrored it. I wasn't sure what form he was going to strike with first, but I didn't have much time to think about it, as suddenly his fists were flying at me, hitting my in the shoulders. I instinctively ducked, landing with one leg bent and the other strait, my hands curved so the tips brushed the ground and swung my leg out, trying to trip him, but he jumped. I rolled under him, coming up behind and gave my highest tornado kick, but was so fast! Whatever I pulled he countered with greater speed and accuracy. 

****

Finally, I was mad. I had him in the perfect position, and punched hard aiming right for his face. He caught my arm, and flipped me over his shoulder, making me land on my back and knocking the wind out of my lungs. Pain racked the entire back part of my body, and I hissed air back into my system, trying to regain my breath. Morpheus stood in a regal stance, his legs locked together, though his hands were locked behind his back. He grinned that same knowing smile down at me. 

"Come on, Athene. Don't play games. I'm trying to teach you, but if you won't even apply yourself, let's give up." 

My blood boiled at these comments. How could he do this? He knew I was just starting out! I bared my teeth, clenched together, snapping myself into fighting stance in the most powerful way I could muster, wanting to seem like I was someone to be reckoned with. I ran for him, his back was turned and he didn't seem to see me, but at the very last second, his wrist shot into view at the exact level of my face and I ran right into it, and blood starting gushing from my nose. I cried out, back away and holding my nose in my hand. Morpheus came around again and the deadly dance began once more. Punch, kick, duck, spin, jump, elbow, knife hand, spear hand, I ran the moves over in my head as my body lashed out with each command. 

Somewhere when we were punching with each other Morpheus was still smiling. 

"Come on Athene! You're better than this! We didn't go to all this trouble just so you could flop around!" 

Somewhere in the back of my mind I knew what he was doing, but at this point I really didn't care because the rest of my mind was blinded with rage. I lashed out with even more fury and ferocity. I was lashing with my fists, him blocking every move when a thought suddenly bubbled in my head. 

I spun around as if to do a back kick but at the last moment flipped over at incredible speed, tumbling over myself, landing on my feet right behind him and kicked right between his shoulder blades. His body arched back and he fell to the ground. I jumped down and twisted his arm behind him, my wrist cocked and ready to punch. Holding him there for a few seconds, I then got up off him to allow him to get up again. When he turned around, his smile had widened even further. It was eerie. 

"I told you you could do better." 

I now felt drained, as if I had used every ounce of my energy. But no, I was back on the ship again, feeling very tired. The instant the pike was out of my head and my hands were free, I went to my nose and drew back blood. Scowling over at Morpheus, I couldn't help but smile at the proud grin on his face. Wiping away the bloody mess from my face with my sleeve, I realized that the whole crew was gathered around Tank's console and mother suddenly dashed from the group, enveloping me in her grasp.

"Why didn't you tell me, Athene? I was so worried when I couldn't find you, and then Sticks here told me you were fighting Morpheus..." Now she rounded on him. "Morpheus, how could you! I wanted to talk to her first, warn her! Look what you did, you gave her a bloody nose!" 

Morpheus continued to smile at her, but now his smile wandered over her shoulder to the person behind her. Wiggling out from my mother's grasp, I looked up. 

Dad stood there, grinning the proudest grin I've ever seen. He nodded at me. This was his approval, and I felt filled again. 

"She moves almost as quickly as you, Neo. Truly, this is your offspring."

"She's also truly her mother's," he said in reply. "No one could move with as much animalistic grace as she showed." He smiled at me again and I felt myself glow. Mom grabbed my hand and squeezed it, though in a loving way this time. It was the first time I'd ever been called graceful.

"Next time we'll have to show her the real Matrix.," Mom said quietly.

"But isn't it practically the same thing?" I asked, slightly confused. 

"It was our program that we formed using the same principals as the Matrix," Said Morpheus in reply. "In the real program, we have no control over what happens. The Agents do."

I nodded, understanding.

"The real Matrix is even prettier than that, though, we could simulate the same thing, only it wouldn't just be images. It would be the actual people who are still plugged in, not simulated," Pointed out Dad. "But you'll like it, except for the Agents shooting at youand all."

They chuckled darkly, even though it wasn't funny at all. 

"So when do I get to go to the real thing?" I asked anxiously. Dad cast a sideways glance at Mom, who put a hand to her mouth and looked away.

"Not today," He said quietly, ruffling my hair.

I nod and bow my head. 

"Get some rest, Athene. You'll need it." Said Morpheus in a final tone, and with that I headed off for my room. The instant my head touched the worn mattress, I was asleep. 

****

Though it was all a mind game, I still felt as if I had done all of that in real life. I understood that because my mind thought it, it made it real, but it didn't make me once ounce less tired. I slept for what seemed like days, the only thing waking me being hunger. 

I didn't want to leave the comfort and sanctity of my room, but the growling pain in my stomach made me get up and have some nourishment. I wolfed it quickly, even though my body still felt incredibly sluggish. As soon as the bowl was empty, I wanted to go back to sleep, and it felt as if I was pulling the weight of the world as I slumped back to my bed, where I surprisingly didn't fall back asleep. I rolled and tossed into all kinds of different positions, but I just could not go back to Dreamland. I beat the mattress with my fists, though I didn't expect that to help. I sighed, putting my hands over my face and breathing out heavily. Resigning myself to it, I sat up. Reaching over to the table that rested by my bed, I grabbed my book and immersed myself in it. 

So far in my book, I was only up to Odysseus fighting the Cyclops, Polyphemus, and how three of his men had been eaten already. It wasn't very descriptive, the words were actually quite plain, but I could easily picture Prait being picked up by the back of his shirt and dropped into the mouth of a gigantic man with one eye. I shuddered at the image and shut the book. Now things were just miserable. I couldn't sleep, couldn't read...what was there to do without leaving my room.

I tried to remember the stories my mother had told me as a little girl. Little Goldilocks and how she had broken into the home of three bears, which I didn't know how to picture until she explained it to me. Even then, after she had explained what bears were, I had questioned the entire story. Like, 'How did these bears come into the possession of an entire cottage? Why did they have chairs, and beds, when they can't even use these pieces of furniture? And why are they eating porridge, if they eat fish and plants as you have told me?' Now I regret that. I wish I hadn't been so analytical by nature, and just gone along with things. But now I'm like how I am now. Cold and untrusting. 

Fuming, I wished I could sleep, because if we were going in tomorrow as I hoped we were, I'd be tired beyond belief. I ripped the blanket off my bed and wrapped it around my shoulders and walked out, the ends trailing on the floor. I wandered around the ship like a lost soul. Everyone was asleep, except for Morpheus and Prait, who always worked at the helm. I stayed clear of there, and merely inspected every part of the ship, memorizing every bolt and pipe, the memories burned into my mind. My eyelids felt heavy and my legs felt as if I had just run a mile. I walked down to a slightly hidden hallway, my footsteps echoing off of the grated metal floors and bouncing off the metallic walls. Leaning against one wall, I sank to the floor, collapsing in a heap, the blanket piling around me. Leaning my head back against the wall, I closed my eyes, breathing out gently. I felt wasted, just like I should after having been uploading for five hours straight. I sat there, my breaths hanging in the air and coming back twice as loud. 

Sudden footsteps startled me, making my eyelids snap open and my head rise off its resting place against the wall. Looking down the way, I saw my father, his dark hair contrasting with his pale skin, but blending into the shadows easily. I sighed and leaned my head against the wall again. He came closer, being able to tell by the volume of his steps. He sat down next to me. I didn't even acknowledge his existence. 

"Was I really that loud?" I asked, not even looking at him, 

"No, I just couldn't sleep. I usually come here, especially after spewing all over it right after I'd been released."

I sprung from my seat, disgusted. He laughed. "That was before you were even being thought about being born hon. It's okay."

I sat down again, giving him an angry look that quickly melted into a gentle smile. "So, what kept you up?"

"Of all the things in the world...you!" He said, turning and giving me a sarcastic smile.

I chuckled darkly. "And what was it this time? My possible death in the Matrix...what?"

"Just thoughts," He said simply, turning away.

There was a long silence. A thought suddenly struck me.

"You never talk about your time in the Matrix. What was your family in the Matrix like? How was your childhood?" 

He took a long breath, as if this were painful. Not turning to face me, he started to speak.

"My mom's name was Catherine and my father's name was Thomas, the same as my Matrix given name. I was Thomas Jr. Anderson. My father was a science professor at the local high school. My mom was unemployed and stayed at home with me...and my little brother, Kyle. We were a fairly normal family. Kyle and me were the best in all of our classes, but I was hopelessly better at math than him. We were always ahead of the class in science because of our father's profession. He would bring home chemical kits and such for us to play and tinker with. It was okay.

"Then our little family unit fell apart. When I turned 17 and Kyle 15, he had an older friend who drove a motorcycle. Kyle got a ride with him to some party. That night at around one in the morning, we got a call saying that a car had hit him. His friend was in critical condition, but Kyle had been DOA. I didn't think life was fair, after that. The kid that got him killed was living but not my brother. Our family was now so separate, it was like we were just tenants in a boarding house.

"Finally, when I was about eighteen, --I hadn't gone to college, so I could help support my family. My dad lost his job because after Kyle's death he had just stopped trying, and mom was too traumatized to do anything-- Dad brought home a CPU. I was intrigued. It was something I had only read about, and I was anxious to see how they really worked. I took it up to my room. I think Dad really wanted it for himself, but was too happy that I wanted it that he didn't care. I tinkered with that hunk of shit for hours, plugging it into every hold in the wall, trying to connect the cords to other things. Made my room look like the inside of the machine itself! Finally, one day when I finally got it to work, the screen lit up with the Matrix. At first, I had no idea what the hell it was I was looking at. I thought all computers did that at first, like some kind of coding they had to run through. Only when I finally started to understand computers that I realized they weren't supposed to do that. I started searching everywhere for that code again, but I never came past it. The Internet was a blessing and a wonderful window of opportunity. An even bigger chance to look for the green-lettered code. Finally, the name Morpheus came into the picture. 

"I had finally gone off to college to see if I could get a majors in computers and was playing with a junky laptop I had bought off a guy for forty bucks. Tapping away that night in my dorm room at around two in the morning. I came across the green letters again, but it was just a flash, just like the first time, only this time around it was followed with a news report site. It telling about this internationally wanted hacker who went by the name Morpheus. I knew this guy was my idol. I wanted to find him and talk to him. By this time I had already become far more accustomed to the name 'Neo' than 'Thomas'. This was my hacking name. I had already hacked into hundreds of files, for my own pleasure at the beginning, then for money as people wanted me to check on files and download top secret information for them. I made a lot of cash that way, and that's what got me through the rest of college. I barely got through college, and got a job at a computer software designing company, and got a good pay there. But I still made a lot of money on the side by downloading things just as I had done in college. And then, I was released." He stopped there, having spoken in a monotone in almost the entire story. It was unnerving. 

"What happened? I mean, once you were released? How did you find out you were the One?"

He gave me another funny look, as if trying to decide whether I was up to it, or he was. Taking another deep breath, this time because of lack of oxygen, he started again. Launching into the story of how mom had hacked into his computer and typed the cryptic messages on the screen so she could meet him at the nightclub. About how the Agents had found him at work and taken him into custody, bugging him and then being taken to Morpheus and taking the red pill over the blue pill. How he had been taken to the Oracle and told that he wasn't the One. Morpheus' capture and how he and Mom had had to go and save him. How he had been shot at least ten times in the chest, but had not died. How he had stopped the bullets in midair and destroyed the lead Agent, Agent Smith. 

When he finished, we sat in an awkward silence. Now I was looking at him funny. Why had he never told me these things? Why had I always lived in shadow? I suddenly reached over and flung my arms around him, and he gathered me in to return the hug. We sat there, holding each other for a while. Finally, he kissed the top of my head. 

"You better go to sleep. You need to finish your uploading if you want to go in tomorrow." I nodded and stood up. Turning to head for my quarters, I stopped and turned on my heel. 

"Thank you," I said, staring him in the eyes.

"For what?" He asked, slightly confused and standing up.

"For everything," I walked up and kissed him on the cheek. "'Night dad."

"Good night, Athene." 

I started to walk for my quarters once more, feeling even more ready for tomorrow than I ever had. 

* * * * *

__

Editor's note: As you may notice, we edited this chapter, so please, nothing more about the Cypher mistake. Oh, we corrected some grammar and spelling errors too. Also, the line 'This will feel...a little weird" was resurrected just because it's such a wonderful line. Again, all credit goes to the Wachowski Bros. for being the genius' they are.

-Xenogears


	2. Part II: Release

A/N: Wow! I'm overwhelmed at the great reviews on this story! I personally didn't think it would go very far, but upon closer examination I see that I really should keep with this one! Thank you so much for keeping it alive. Argh! Okay, first off I'd just like to make a couple of corrections: (1) Throughout the entire first half of the story when Cypher is mentioned, I typed 'Cypress' instead of 'Cypher' and I would just like to state that that is incorrect and I am stupid and should have read through better. (2)When Athene looks over to see if she's done uploading, she's unable to see anything, so she doesn't know if Tank nodded, but she thinks he did. Well, he didn't. So, sorry for misleading you there. My bad. (3) About Doc being released at 55..I've recently watched the movie and the conclusion I'm drawing is they don't release a mind after around twenty something. That's why everyone on the ship is young, or something. Anyway, Doc was picked up in Zion. You know what I should do? Just rewrite all of my mistakes and then post that up there as the new and improved. Okay, well, look out for that then. Hopefully I'll do it soon enough. Whew! Okay, I feel better now. Yet again, I own only the new members of the crew and the heroine-in-question. So, for those tortured souls who have waited so very long for this part two, here it is! Sit back, grab some munchies, and enjoy the show! 

Part II: Release

Morning came yet again, but I was awake to meet it this time. I had been awake all night, tossing and turning, unable to become comfortable with the new appendage on my body. Normally I slept on my back, but this was impossible because anything that touched the still tender spot sent shocks of pain through my head. It made me even more anxious for the time to come. 

Finally, when I could stand it no longer, I got up and headed out. My body felt like the nourishment I ate every day, with just about as much consistency. I met no one in the halls. They were all still asleep. Heading towards the bridge where I would undoubtedly find Morpheus, I planned on asking him to finish my uploading and to take me on some more training programs. I still had to make The Jump. I didn't need the Agent training program. I understood the system well. If they aren't one of us, they are one of Them, and thus should be treated with the utmost caution. Even people we were thinking of freeing we had to deal with extreme carefulness. If the Agents found out whom we were planning to free, they would infiltrate and we'd be dead. 

Morpheus sat before the bubble-like windshield, blinking sleepily. Prait was steering. Though being only twenty, he had caught onto driving the huge craft easily and many a time spent his nights (and days) steering the ship. Morpheus was resting his chin on top of his fisted hands, elbows on knees, staring out into the infinite tunnels that spread before him. I placed a hand on his shoulder, making him jump slightly and swivel around to face me in his chair.

"Athene. It's very early, what are you doing up?"

"I couldn't sleep." I say, pointing to my neck. He nodded knowingly. 

"It's still tender now, but it'll toughen up. Trust me." 

I said nothing, and a slight silence hung between us. 

"I was wondering if you could load me into the jump program, and upload everything else I still need to know."

He looked me over, and then nodded. Standing, he clasped Prait's shoulder to let him know he was leaving and then walked out with me. We got to the Matrix room, as many called it. Morpheus left to get Tank. He came quickly, Tank rubbing the sleep from his eye.

"...It's so early, Morpheus! Why couldn't it just wait?" Tank was complaining, but sat down and started to work anyway. Tank inserted the spike into my head, and the cold metal screamed into her head, and then the images flashed by again. I was being uploaded once more, and this time it wasn't so bad. I still found it hard to breathe, but it wasn't as hard as before. 

Six hours later, I felt as if my head might explode, it felt so cluttered with information. I was of course happy to know all of this, as it would undoubtedly help me, but I still felt a bit overwhelmed. Morpheus walked over to me. 

"We're going to do the jump program. Do you think you can handle it?" he asks me.

I nod furiously, though this is made difficult as I am still on the metallic spike. Morpheus takes a seat directly across from me and Tank plugs him in, typing in the codes and I'm suddenly in midair, looking down upon a giant sprawling city, with tall, squarish things below us, rushing up to meet us at incredible speeds until I was standing onto of one of them. I blinked. Looking around, I was in awe. It was like a sea of metal tops, all stories above the ground. My jaw was open slightly. 

"Focus Athene. Do not let the view get in your way of work. Remember, you have to know that this is possible. Let everything else go. Free your mind." He gave me one of his maddening smiles and then ran to the edge, jumping off. I had seen him do this so many times that I wasn't a bit surprised when he landed on the top of another giant building several hundred yards away. I stared at the platform, trying to 'free my mind' as Morpheus put it. I licked my lips, and then started running until I was off the edge, running in mid air. This was great! I was going to make it! When a sudden sinking feeling started in my heart, and I realized I was falling. My legs and arms were pumping as if I was still running, but I was falling, falling, falling, shiny planes of glass flying past me at impossible speeds. I cried out as hard, gray ground rushed up to meet me. I sunk into the ground as if it were molding to my body, but I didn't stop flinching. I knew what would happen next. The effort of throwing me up again, I turned over and landed flat on my back, knocking the wind out of me instantly. I gasped for breath. And then I was back on the ship once more, still trying to catch my breath. I felt the sinking feeling in my heart again, like I had when I started falling.

Morpheus was already standing over me, placing a comforting hand on my forehead. "Don't be upset. Your father didn't make it until about the fifth try, and he's the One." He gave a small smile, and then unplugged me. I don't get up, and put a hand on his arm. 

"Let me go again." I say, urging him with my eyes.

He chuckles and shakes his head. "And you wonder why your mother wouldn't let you go in. You never give up!"

"Please."

"No, Athene. You made it almost half way over and then fell at least six stories onto a concrete street. That is no small task. You need to recoup. And you're not going back in until you do."

I glare at him, and then roughly stand up, storming for my room and slamming the door behind me. How could he do this? I only needed a couple more times and I would have had it! But as I crumpled on my bed, I felt as if every bone in my body were in pain, and my anger diminished. I wrapped my arms around my middle and lay down, willing myself to sleep. It seemed like that's all I did anymore was sleep, but I digress.

I woke up to a light being shined in my face. The door was open every so slightly and the lights were blaring in. Someone had opened the door just a sliver and now that person was leaving. 

"I'm up." I said heavily. Swinging my legs over, the person opened the door further. It was Notton. 

"Morpheus wanted me to get you. He wants you to eat, and then go to the loading dock. We're going in." 

This was all I needed to hear. Running my fingers through my hair, I dashed for the mess hall, pouring in a bowl of nutrients and eating them as rapidly as I could. When I was done, I didn't even bother putting the dirty dish on the tray, just took off for the loading dock. 

Everyone else was there; Scrylla, Carmen, Morpheus, Prait, Notton, Mom, and Dad. Each were standing before their respective spots except for Carmen and Notton. They were standing next to Tank at the 'switchboard' as we called it, since Tank was our 'Operator'. 

Prait walked over, lowering the back till I was almost laying down, and then inserted the metallic stick into my head once more.

I didn't cry out this time, she inhaled sharply through my teeth, but as soon as I did, I was in a large, dingy room. Broken and boarded windows surrounded me and a bluish light was cast around. A phone sat on a table in front of me. The rest of the crew materialized around me, and Morpheus strode forward, picking up the phone and saying "We're in."

Putting the phone down again, he turned to the rest of us. 

"Prait, Scrylla and I will be going elsewhere. We've picked up a new person whom we think would make a good addition to the team, but we need to investigate. Carmen has to bait him as well." Carmen smiled slyly at the mention of her name.

"Neo, Trinity, you have permission to take Athene out and show her around. Get her accustomed to things. We'll meet back here in three hours. If anything goes wrong, you know how to get a hold of us." Nodding to Carmen and Notton, they walked out a back door. That left me with my parents.

They walked a little bit ahead of me until we came to a door. They opened it.

"Welcome to the trap." Dad said, pushing the door open to a whole new world.

Stepping out into the blinding light, an incredible sight met me. Green ground stretched on for miles, with all kinds of plant life growing everywhere. Other people were there as well, walking, laughing, playing, running, living. It made my jaw drop. 

Looking up, I saw that the sky was a clear, baby blue and the sun wasn't scorched. It was shining brightly and looking at it made my eyes hurt. I squeezed them shut and opened them again. Little dots of darkness followed my gaze everywhere, but I ignored them. I turned around to face Mom and Dad.

Now that it was light enough, I could see what they were wearing. Both were wearing black that flattered their features. Looking down, I saw that I was wearing dark jeans and an unnecessarily tight black tee-shirt. _Thanks, Tank_ I thought sarcastically. 

"What's with the black?" I asked, quite confused. After having to wear dark colors most of my life, I had been looking forward to wearing other things. 

Dad shrugged. "It's just always been that way, I guess. They were wearing black leather when I first joined." I frowned slightly, but it didn't faze me too much. 

"Where should we take her first?" I could hear Dad asking Mom. "Parks are covered. How about ocean?"

_Ocean?_ I thought, confused. These words held no meaning to me whatsoever. They continued to converse about strange things until I couldn't take it any longer. Walking back a few steps so I was behind my mother, I pulled her cell out of the pocket of her shiny, long black coat. 

The bottom flipping out, I put it to my ear.

"Operator." Tank's voice came out.

"Tank, do you have any World History uploading programs?" I asked, hearing the frustration in my voice. I was fed up, tired of being totally oblivious to everything they were talking about. It made me feel stupid, and that was one emotion I did not like.

"Athene? But this is-"

"Do you, or do you not have that program?" I asked, my voice rising. I could feel my parent's eyes on me, watching me. Somewhere I could hear my mother's voice yelling at me. But I tuned them out. 

"I might, but I don't-"

"Look for it!"

There was a pause and I could hearing the tapping of keys on a keyboard. 

"I have one, but it's not very up to-"

"Load it up, Tank."

"But-"

"Just do it!" I slipped the cover on the phone shut with a little more force than necessary, and handed it back to my mother. She was glaring at me, but I stood still, closing my eyes. And again it started, people and places and things flying past my eyes at incredible speeds, making my eyelids flutter again until it finally stopped. 

Looking around, I could identify everything around me. I was wearing 'denim jeans', my mother was wearing a leather coat and dress, my father leather pants. There were trees everywhere, and the green sea before me was grass. I knew what was happening. And I knew what 'ocean' was. 

Turning to face them again, I smiled. "Show me _everything_." 

And they did. They took me to restaurants, and carnivals and shops. We were walking down one of the thousands of streets in the city, and Dad turned to give Mom a small, almost sad smile.

"Jesus..." he said softly, and she started to smile too.

"What?" she asked in an almost bored tone.

He pointed to one of the stores. It read 'Chang's Chinese'.

"I used to eat there. Really good noodles." He grinned broadly, softening his usually serious features. Mom allotted as smile as well, and intertwined her fingers with his.

Mom led us into one store in particular. I didn't see the name, but one word stuck out: _chocolate._ I had only heard about the stuff since that's the color my mother described mine and my father's eyes as, and then I was still a little in the dark. 

Mom walked to the glass counter that held all kinds of sweets within. Staring at it, I realized what my mother meant when she said I had 'chocolate brown' eyes. Staring at one of the confections, the little label read 'amaretto creme'. I had no idea what that meant, but I figured I'd learn soon enough. 

Turning back to us with a small white bag, Mom smiled a small smile. "Let's go back to the park."

We did and found a nice spot in the shade. Even though I was only wearing a black shirt, the sun was baking through and making me uncomfortably hot. This was a new sensation all together. The Neb was usually drafty and cold and many a night I couldn't sleep because it was too cold. But now, I would have rather been back in the drafty, icy ship.

The shade felt good, cooling my skin. Mom opened the bag and pulled out a piece of the candy and handed to me. I held it in my hand, staring at it.

"Eat it soon, or it'll melt." Dad cautioned in a gentle voice. 

I popped it in my mouth, and I was glad I did. It was the most incredible taste I had ever experienced. Having grown up on the slop that the ship provided, I felt like I was having a sensory overload. I tried to keep the taste in my mouth as long as possible until I finally told myself that it wasn't real. This made me swallow the chocolate, but I couldn't swallow the idea that what I had just experienced wasn't real.

"That was incredible. But it's not real." I said, stating the obvious.

Exchanging glances, my parents shook their heads. No.

Dad lifted his wrist to his face and he peered at a watch. "We should probably head back, Trin. We only have half an hour to get back, and it's a good walk from here back to the warehouse."

Mom nodded, and we headed off, leaving me wanting more of the sugary goodness, but being revolted at how well the machines were able to make me feel like that. 

Dad and Mom made swift, easy strides but the heat made me slow and winded me easily. Suddenly, the cell-phone chirped.

Turning to give his wife a worried look, Dad pulled his phone out of his pocket. 

"We got trouble." I could hear through the tiny phone. 

"Where are you?" He replied, the fear resounding through his voice.

"34th and Lake Street. You gotta get here fast. There's Agents!" 

Mom looked at Dad, and though her eyes were shielded by dark sunglasses, I could feel the fear coming off of her. He nodded. 

"I'll be there soon." Slapping the phone shut, he turned to us.

"There's Agents. I need to get there. You guys get there when you can." 

Mom nodded. "Be careful. We'll get there as soon as possible."

Dad looked upward, and jumped, soaring into the sky. I watched in awe as he did so. It was one thing to watch it on the monitors, but to see it in real life was a whole other thing. Then I realized it wasn't real, and frowned again.

"Remember how Morpheus told you to free your mind?" Mom asked, turning to me. I nodded, a clenching feeling starting in my chest. "Now is the time to do it."

I licked my lips and nodded. She started running, running like no human should be able to. I struggled to keep up, but even then I was still at least ten yards behind. 

"Free your mind, Athene, free your mind!" I panted to myself, and then tried to picture blankness in my head. The wind started coming harder against me, and when I opened my eyes I realized that I was running as fast as Mom. I was only a couple feet behind her now. 

Suddenly, shots echoed off behind me and one grazed my ear. I screamed and increased my speed. "They're here!" I screamed after my mother, even though we were side by side. 

"Faster, Athene! Follow me!" she suddenly took a sharp right-hand turn and I scrambled after her. Another quick right down an ally filled only with yowling cats and garbage disposals. More shots fired behind us.

"Where's that damn phone!" I yelled after her.

Mom looked up at a near-by street sign. "Right here." She put her fist through a glass window in some kind of old store that was up for rent. We climbed inside, avoiding the glass shards carefully, and then headed for the black phone that rested on its cradle. It was ringing. Mother reached for the receiver and picked it up, then thrust it at me. I grabbed it and put it to my ear. And suddenly I was whooshing through some kind of black hole. I squeezed my eyes shut, and my stomach clenched. Then, I was back on the Neb. Seconds later, my mother came to life beside me. Then Morpheus, across from me, then Notton, Carmen and Dad. Scrylla and Prait lay very still in their chairs, and deep red holes were in their chests and legs. I gasped and struggled to get up, but I was still on the spike. 

"Easy, Athene." said Tank, rushing over to unplug me. I quickly unfastened myself and ran over to Scrylla and then started crying. 

"They're dead! How did this happen?" I asked, almost hysterical.

"Agents." came Morpheus' morbid voice behind me. He placed a comforting hand on my shoulder and I hung my head. Tears coursed down my cheeks and left pearly trails on my flesh. I turned to see my father standing up, his deep brown eyes full of pain and sorrow. I ran to him and flung my arms about his neck, sobbing into his chest. He held me back, comforting me. Mother came over, and Dad put an arm around her as well, until we were in a three-person hug. 

"Things happen, Athene. You need to realize that. This is why your father is such a gift to us all. Most times he is able to save them, but there are instances which are inevitable. And we cannot change that."

I nodded, still sniffling. 

"This just makes Murdoc all the more enticing. After the loss of two people, we need to rebuild our crew again, and Murdoc will fulfill those requirements." Morpheus said, heaving a morbid sigh.

"Murdoc?" I asked through my tears. "Is that who you were going after today?"

He nodded. "Apparently, they've been watching him for months and were anticipating us. They were able to shoot Scrylla and Prait before Neo arrived, but he was able to get the rest of us out safely."

Tank got up and walked over to the bodies and pulled the spike out of each of them one last time. He looked over at my father, and together they carried the limp forms of our former comrades to behind the back chair. Tank disappeared and came back with a long sheet of canvas, and gently settled it over them.

I closed my eyes and tried to stop the flowing tears. Mom squeezed my hand again.

Morpheus turned to address the crew as a hole. "I think we all need to get some rest. Tank, I want you to help me on the bridge. The rest of you, get some sleep. When everyone's awake again, we'll go back and meet our newest member."

The crowd dispersed and each went to our respective chambers. I went back to my cell of a room, and lay on the cot, taking in deep breaths to try and stop the shaking. I had seen them come, and see them go, but it was always a shock. The Neb had seen many a great warrior, but only the strong survived. Darwin's theory; survival of the fittest. Natural selection. However you cut it, it still meant that the strong lived and the weak were killed off. And many were too used to life in the Matrix to become strong in the real world, thus were eliminated quickly. But that didn't make it any less of a shock to the rest of us.

I tossed and turned on my flimsy mattress, trying to get comfortable, but too many thoughts were rushing through my mind. Thoughts of seeing the blood seep through the holes placed by an imaginary world, thoughts of how close I had come to dying today myself. I wrapped my arms about my middle, hugging myself. I was glad to be alive.

And then anger bubbled through my system. Again, it all boiled down to the machines. It was their fault I had been trapped on the Goddamn ship for thirteen years, but now it was their fault for taking the lives of two people very close to me. It had always been their fault, and it always would be. No one else could be blamed.

I slept fitfully, drifting into dreams of smirking Agents as they blew bullets through Morpheus, Mom, Dad, and then finally me, and then waking up drenched in cold sweat, gasping for breath. It was miserable, and it left me feeling hollow, weak, and queasy.

Being unable to stand it any longer, I stood up. I was still shaking, and my legs almost gave way beneath me. I felt miserable. Placing a hand on the cold metal, I steadied myself and took deep breaths. Deciding it was just because I needed some nourishment, I headed for the Mess Hall. It was unoccupied when I arrived, and I ate my bowl of 'food' in solitude. It made me feel slightly better, but I was still weak on my legs. I headed for the bridge.

Tank was watching the surrounding fields of pods with far too much vigor, and I figured it was because he just wanted to divert his mind. On the other end of the spectrum, Morpheus sat wrapped in a ratty blanket with a glassy look over his eyes, staring off into millions of miles away. He was as still as a gargoyle.

"Morpheus?" I asked gently, easing my way into the room to stand behind him. He jerked out of his funk and looked at me, blinking slowly. His eyes were full of pain and sorrow, and my heart went out to him. "How...are things going?" I asked, and even I could hear how lame the question was.

Morpheus remained still. "We're heading for Zion. We need to drop off the bodies and stock up on fuel and other resources." he said in a monotone voice. 

"Zion?" I asked, and my heart started thumping. I had only been allowed inside Zion once, but I was an infant and so I don't remember any of it. I hadn't been allowed back because of the uproar it had created. Crowds had swarmed the crew of the Neb, trying to catch of a glimpse of the child of the One, and security was a mess. So, whenever the sporadic visits to Zion resurfaced, I was left on the ship to watch over things. This would explain why Tank was in such a good mood. He was going home.

"Do...do you think I could go, now that I'm fighting?"

Again, Morpheus stayed still. He didn't respond at first, so I thought maybe he was either ignoring me, or hadn't heard the question. I waited with bated breath for his verdict.

"I want you to go this time. You are of age now, and can take care of yourself. Security will not be so big a problem now that you are older and can better watch out on your own." he replied in the same monotone voice. My heart soared, despite previous happenings. I smiled, but didn't cheer or celebrate or carry on. This was a somber time, and small victories meant little when two crewmembers were dead.

"She's approaching quickly, sir. We'll be there in about half an hour. Should we crank speed?" Tank reported, looking anxiously at Morpheus.

Morpheus shook his head. "Wait. I want to have Murdoc before we go in."

Tank nodded, and looked slightly put out. "Should we at least dock there?"

"No. Keep her at broadcast depth, but at least ten minutes away from Zion. When Murdoc recovers, we'll go in."

"But Captain, that could take weeks! And we don't have the resources..."

"We will wait until Murdoc and the rest of the crew is ready." Morpheus said in a final tone, and Tank quickly turned his attention back outside. 

"How soon should we go in?" I asked quietly, making small talk.

"When we left it was mid afternoon. Right now, it should be about two in the morning. We'll wait a few more hours and catch him at school."

I closed my eyes, searching for what 'school' meant. Images of squat brick buildings and multitudes of kids both younger, older and same age as me were called up into my head, along with pictures of math problems, paper and pencils, and much more. I imagine that had I been originally born in the Matrix, I would have liked school.

There was silence amongst us again, and I turned and left. I would have to occupy myself for several more hours. I now found it mind boggling how I had been able to entertain myself so easily for the past twelve years when a whole other world was waiting for me in the Matrix. I decided on trying to finish my reading of The Odyssey, but it was impossible. My eyes wouldn't focus, and I kept thinking of what I had seen in the Matrix. How easily I could have been wiped off the face of the earth. How much more real everything seemed in that unreal world. How in the real world, all you saw was blood suddenly seeping through the body from unseen inflictions, but in the dream world, you saw the pain on their faces, the surprise, the anger, or whatever their final expression may have been. You had to see the bullets rip through flesh and bone. Had to watch them die.

I walked to what I had claimed as 'my' corridor. It was a small passageway with a flat metal wall on one side, a grated floor, and some boilers directly across from you. Dad used it often too, but now that his excursions in the Matrix were far more exhausting, he slept. But I didn't. Not any more.

So now I was sitting on the grated floor, my back against the flat metallic wall, breathing. It was getting harder and harder to sleep on my hard cot in that cell of a room. Now, in one of the most uncomfortable places on the ship, I could feel myself drifting away...

I was in the Matrix, and one of the vindictive Agents was before me, gun head at point-blank. I was yelling at myself to move, to kick, to punch, to take him down. But my body was rigid, and refused to move. The Agent was smirking now, an evil, cold smile of victory. My reflection was visible in his dark sunglasses, and he was saying my name, over and over in an icy, scratchy voice: "Athene...Athene...Athene..." 

I jerked away. "Athene? Athene, wake up." Someone was shaking me and repeating my name. I took a sharp breath. "Good, you're awake. What are you doing here?" asked my mother.

I looked up. Her pale blue eyes were full of concern, and she blinked confusedly at me. 

I started to stand up. " I was...Just thinking and I guess I drifted off. What? Has something happened?"

"We're going in now. Morpheus figures the time is right now. Are you ready?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" I ask while yawning.

She shrugged. "I was just wondering. Come. He's waiting." 

I followed behind her until we got to the core. I took my customary seat closest to the console, and Carmen walked over, buckled me in, then inserted the spike. 

I winced, but it didn't last long, because now I was in. I was in the middle of a park, surrounded by green grass and long-since rusted jungle gyms. A light breeze made a swing move back and forth in the wind.

Mom, Dad, Morpheus, and Notton then appeared around me. Morpheus pulled out his cell phone and gave Tank the okay. He walked to the front of the crowd, and we followed behind him. A black Lincoln sat before us, the windows tinted with sunlight glinting off of them. We got in, with Notton driving, and Morpheus in the front seat. I sat on the end, with Mom next to me and Dad on the end. The car started and we were off.

I watched as the surroundings flew past, and the windows made everything look as if it were nighttime. Kids and businessmen walked along the sidewalks, and other cars streaked past us. More stately houses lined the sidewalk, and eventually we came to stop before a large, squat brick building that I instantly recognized even though I'd never seen it before: _school_.

Mom and I got out a the same time and shut the doors simultaneously, perfectly coordinated. She was wearing her usual outfit; tight leather shirt and black pants. I was in something I'd never worn before; tight black leather pants that were incredibly uncomfortable, and a soft, cottony black shirt with a cow neck. My long black hair was in one thick braid down my back, and dark shades adorned my eyes. Black leather boots with an inch thick heel made me slightly taller than usual. The ensemble made me feel powerful. I felt like I could maybe do this now.

I walked around the car, and stood before my mother. She watched me from behind her wrap-around sunglasses. I could feel her gaze from behind them. 

"You sure you can do this?" she asked, her voice full of motherly concern. I nodded. I didn't trust myself with speaking.

She nodded back and looked behind her to where Dad stood, then looked back at me. Notton walked over to stand next to me. "I'll take you where you need to go." he explained. He started walking at a brisk pace, and I struggled to stay up with him. I didn't think it necessary to bend the rules when we were surrounded by the slaves of the Matrix. We walked up to a large wire fence. Notton jumped over it easily, and I copied him. We were inside a large cement court, with three large buildings rising up on all four sides. I figured that's where the classes were held. Notton was still walking until he came to one door and stopped. "This is his door. He'll be coming out in about-" he checked his watch. "Two minutes, which means I need to scoot. Just, erm, be as cryptic and mysterious as possible. Keep him wanting more. Oh, and here's what he looks like." Notton pulled out several Polaroid's. They showed a mature looking boy with sandy brown hair and green eyes. 

I nodded, but frowned. Notton gave me the thumbs up and then walked away. I watched him as he disappeared, and then leaned against the wall next to the door. Figuring that the door would open coming out, no one would see me until I wanted to be seen by Murdoc. With my arms crossed, and one leg lifted so that the shoe was against the wall, I imaged I looked like one of the old Wild West ombre's, right before being discovered in the dingy bar for a shoot out. I didn't move. 

Suddenly, a loud bell rang, and the doors each opened with a bang. Kids poured from the doors like water from a cup, I kept an eye out for the boy with the sandy hair and green eyes. There. He walked out, book in hand, looking as if he'd just woken up from a nap. 

"Hello, Murdoc." I called out, still not looking up from the ground or changing my posture. Murdoc froze in his tracks and spun around. He caught sight of me, and I saw as his eyes gave swept over me. 

"Who are you? How do you know that name?" he asked, trying to sound cool but unable to stop the hint of fear in his voice. 

"We have our ways." I say, still not moving.

"Who's we?" He asked, standing still and staring at me. I stood upright, and gave a small smile, then started to walk away, my boots making sharp staccatos on the concrete ground.

"Wait, who are you? How do you know that name?!" he was sounding slightly frantic now, and I had to suppress a larger grin. I kept walking. I had to get him off school grounds. Talking to him in the middle of a deserted blacktop probably wouldn't go over well with the teachers. "Wait! Stop! I have classes, and I need to know *now*!" he cried after me.

I kept walking, but looked over my shoulder. "You've skipped classes before. Why not do it again?" I said in a smooth, cool voice. This was a lot easier than I had thought it might be. The words just seemed to flow, and I didn't even have to think. 

I walked until I was right at the fence and then jumped, sailing over it easily. I then heard his footsteps stop, and I turned around. He was gaping at me. "What the..." I heard him murmur. Then, he ran at the fence, and took a hold. It took him several minutes before he was able to climb over the fence and join me once more. I continued walking.

"Where are you going? Why won't you answer me?" he continued shouting. It took me a minute to realize just how quickly I was walking. I slowed down so he could catch up, when I realized that I had no place to take him. We were in the open, and anyone was bound to see us. I pulled out my cell phone. 

"Operator." I heard Tank say as if he'd said it hundreds of times before.

"Tank, where can I take him? We're out in the open, and that's never a good place. Give me a secure location."

"Hold on." he said, and the sound of keys being typed could be heard in the background. "Okay, got it. Got a location on 23rd and Main. A building for lease with a back storage room. You can go there."

I looked at the nearest street sign. I was on 54th. "Shit." I muttered.

"What?"

"I'm a long ways away from that. Got anything closer?"

"Nope. That's probably as secure as it gets. You gonna be able to do this?"

"Yeah of course...I'll just need to bend some rules, is all. He won't be ready for it, it'll be impossible for him to keep up."

"Do what you need to do, Athene. Just give him the speech. We need this kid."

I sighed. "Yeah, I know. Got any directions?"

"Umm..." More typing. "Head south till you get to 32nd, then turn west and go straight. It's mostly walking. Shouldn't take too long."

"Can't you get us a motorcycle or something?"

"Hmm, that could work. Give me a sec." More key typing. "Alright, got ya covered. Just go to the corner, and there should be one sitting there."

"Thanks." I say, slapping the phone shut and putting it back in my pocket.

"Who were you talking to?" I suddenly heard him ask from behind me.

I turned around. "You'll meet him soon enough. Now, if you really want answers, some *straight* answers, follow me. And be quick about it." I started my brisk walk once more, and he stayed right at my heels.

"So-who-are you?" he panted. 

"All will be answered in time." I say smoothly, and we finally get to the corner. Waiting for us is a beautiful black Harley, gleaming in the sun. I grinned.

"Holy shit...this yours?" he asked, running a hand lovingly along the great thing.

"Temporarily." I said, straddling the great machine. Then something hit me. I pulled out my phone again.

"Operator."

"Tank, I can't drive this thing. Upload me."

"Alright. Done."

I hung up and closed my eyes. More images, this time of people checking gauges, steering the machine, and pulling clutches. It took several seconds. Not have as long as the preliminary uploading had.

I put my hand on the clutch and revved up the motor. It roared beneath me and a sense of power filled me. Murdoc got on behind me, and I kicked, and off we went. Wind whipped through my hair and pulled several loose hairs from the tight braid. Adrenaline pumped through my body as I sped down the street, the motor roaring. The streets signs flashed past me, but I kept a close eye on them. _46th, 47th, 48th_...we were still a ways away. I pushed for speed, and the wind increased around us, howling in my ears. 

We were getting closer. _32nd, 31st, 30th_...just a few more left. There. We were in the twenties. _27th, 26th, 25th, 24th_...There! I made a sharp left-hand turn. 

Run down buildings with broken windows lined the street, and litter was blown about by the wind. I parked the bike in front of a small abandoned store that had a great white sign proclaiming 'For Lease' in bright red lettering in the dirty window. I walked in, Murdoc following behind me.

The room was covered in dust and white-sheeted furniture. I headed for a door at the back that sat behind a counter. Opening it, more dust was disturbed and it floated down onto us. 

In the back room, only a small, rectangular window was almost on the ceiling, light barely coming through. Crates littered the floor, and Murdoc sat down on one of them.

"Can you tell me just what the *hell* is going on here?" he asked, sounding annoyed and slightly angry all at once.

I smiled again. "I think you already know."

The pissed-off look left his face and was replaced by a look of fear trying to be masked. He got very pale very quickly. "The Matrix." he said weakly. 

I nodded. "Bingo."

"What is the Matrix." he said. It was a statement, not a question.

"You're like a person with a porcupine quill caught in your finger. No matter how hard you try to wiggle and pull the quill out, the barbs just catch and sink deeper in. At the first prick of the Matrix, you tried to dismiss it as fantasy and extricate it from your life. But this just sunk it in further, and before you knew it you weren't trying to take it out, but get it further in. Except you have it all backwards. The Matrix isn't stuck in you...You are stuck in the Matrix." I tried not to look too surprised. That little speech had come from no where. It had just came to me. It wasn't too bad either, if I did say so myself.

Murdoc stared at me, his startling green eyes boring into mine. He shook his head in disbelief. "This is crazy. You're nuts." He stood up to leave. I grabbed his arm.

"You're only leaving because you know it's all true." I said. I was grasping at straws, and it was the only cryptic thing I could think to say. I could have said 'Hell no! You're staying right here till Morpheus shows up with the pills' but I figured that wouldn't have kept him. "You've always run from the truth, but you can't now. And you know it."

He froze, and I could feel him tense under my grip. He turned to face me. He closed his eyes and shook his head, taking a deep breath. "This is crazy." he said, but no longer made a move to leave. "So, now what? Do we go off to see the wizard or something?"

It took a minute for this statement to register with me. Wizard of Oz. Right. I snorted. "Not exactly." I opened the door slightly, getting a little nervous. I whipped out the cell again.

"Operator." came Tank's voice once more.

"Tank, why aren't they here? They should be here by now." 

"Sheesh, Athene! Chill out, will ya? Look, they're only a few blocks away, and the building you're being taken to is only a couple doors down. The computers are set up in the old Strong building near by, and Morpheus has the pills. Just calm down."

I nodded, even though he couldn't see me. "Okay. Sorry to bother you." I slapped the phone shut and pocketed it.

"Who should be here by now?" Murdoc asked, standing up.

"You shall see." I peeked out again. There. The black Lincoln was pulling up before the building and I opened the door all the way. I waved an arm so he'd know to follow me, and went to the car. 

I got in the back seat and sat on the far end. Murdoc sat at the other end. Carmen was driving and Notton was sitting in the passenger seat, a gun leveled at his head.

Murdoc raised his hands. "Whoa...what's up with this? I didn't do anything!"

"We have to be careful, Murdoc. We don't know if they've gotten to you or not. This is to be safe."

"If who's gotten to me?" He asked, flicking his eyes from the gun barrel that was only a few inches away from him, to me. 

"The sentinels."

"The who?" he asked, and Carmen shifted the gun slightly, making the barrel move up and down, and making Murdoc scoot further back from it.

"You heard us. Look, Coppertop, I'm not gonna fire this thing unless you give me reason to, so just chill out."

He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing. 

"She's right, Murdoc. She has no reason to shoot you. But it is a precaution."

Notton stopped the car in front of a large, old brick building that seemed to be falling apart before their very eyes. Carmen flicked the gun in the direction of the door. 

"Get out." she said, and he rushed to do so. 

I got out and looked over. The sun was starting to go down. Had it really been that long already? It seemed to have happened so quickly...

Carmen was leading us inside, with Notton close on her heels. I was getting the feeling that the two had grown much closer than just shipmates, but I didn't say anything. Murdoc walked in front of me, and I behind him, bringing up the rear.

Inside, it was dark and I could barely see anything. Someone clicked on a single light bulb, and it cast a dim, eerie light over everything. A large group of computers similar to Tank's console on the Neb sat sprawling over the entire back section of the room. 

Murdoc stopped, gawking at the computers. But I was looking back over at the computers. In the midst of the monitors, CPU's and cords, stood my mother, father, and Morpheus. I caught Morpheus' gaze, and he emitted the smallest of smiles. 

Suddenly, I felt a hand on my shoulder. "We should probably leave. Morpheus has to pop the question and then we come and program him." said my father's voice in my ear. I nodded, and together we walked into another room, my mother, Notton, and Carmen following behind me. The door was shut, but I ran over and pressed my ear against the wood, listening.

I couldn't make out what Morpheus was saying, his voice was too low and deep. Murdoc's voice was much more distinguishable.

"How do I know these aren't ecstasy pills in a new, easy to swallow gel capsule form?" asked Murdoc in a voice full of sarcasm and disbelieving.

I could hear Morpheus give a small chuckle. "These are not narcotics, but I can assure you that when all of this is over, you're going to fell...a little detached from the world." I could hear the smile in Morpheus' voice, and I couldn't help but smile myself. I pulled away from the door. My mother gave me a reproving look, and I shrugged, making my eyes wide an innocent. She sighed and rolled her eyes, but was smiling none the less. 

Then, Dad swept forward and through the door. It was time. He looked to Morpheus, who stood up and gave him the slightest of nods. We each went to a different monitor. Mine measured heart rate, adrenaline, and vital organs. At just a glance, I could see that his vital organs were fine, but that heart rate was up and adrenaline was racing. I gave a chuckle.

I was too busy watching the screens to realize what had happened when he suddenly shouted "What the hell?" 

Glancing up, I saw that a silvery liquid was crawling up his arm. I glanced over at my mother, who gave a slight nod. This was normal. This is what always happened. I looked back at the screen. His heart was far above normal, and he'd go into cardiac arrest soon if it didn't go down. 

The liquid was spreading all over his body and over his head, covering him. He shouted as it entered his mouth, and from Notton's computer I heard "Locked! We got 'em!" and then he was gone. 

Morpheus walked over to the phone that was hidden by shadows in the corner. It had started ringing, and he picked up the receiver, then disappearing. Dad walked over, replaced the receiver on the cradle, and it rang almost immediately. He picked up the phone, and then Dad was gone. This process kept going and going until I was the only one left. The receiver had just touched the cradle once more and then it rang. I reached out a hand and picked it up. Suddenly, I was hurdling through some kind of different dimension. Surrounding me on all sides was the Matrix code, but it only lasted a second, because then my eyes were flying open and I was back on the Neb again.

After I was unplugged and unstrapped, I headed towards the bridge. Morpheus was already there with Doc, and the two were steering the ship at a fast speed.

"We have to get there in time. There's no margin for error." Morpheus was saying to Doc, who nodded grimly, and inched the throttle forward slightly.

We were sailing over the fields and fields of pods until we stopped over a space that didn't look any different from the rest. Doc reached out and pressed a sequence of buttons, then gripped a joystick nearby. The 'arm' as we called it was released from below the ship, and was reaching down deep into what seemed a bottomless crevice. I knew what we would see next, and just as I thought it, it happened

The pale, pink, and quite naked form of Murdoc was being lifted up by the giant arm and pulled into the ship. I knew that my mother and father and several other crewmembers were already there, waiting with blankets and nourishment. I stayed at the bridge. The thought of standing there next to some guy whom I found very attractive but completely naked at the moment made me quite uncomfortable and awkward. I stayed in the bridge for a little while longer, but finally the images of the endless fields of pods because too depressing and I got up and left. Heading towards the back, I was planning on getting some sleep, but the urge to go and see Murdoc became too great and I stopped at the Sick Bay on my way to my sleeping quarters.

Morpheus and my mother were laboring by his side, checking vitals and other read outs. He looked like a giant pincushion with the acupuncture pins stuck all over his body, with a towel draped over his lower waist and thighs. I was grateful for that. Saved me many awkward moments later on. 

He was still quite devoid of hair, but his eyebrows had finally grown back, and a stubble of the same sandy brown hair I had seen the Matrix had now broken out over his scalp. I took him in, watching. I knew he'd only be like that for a days more. Morpheus was starting to turn around, I quick darted away, making a beeline for my room. 

Laying down slowly on my mattress, I cushioned my arms behind my head and closed my eyes, taking deep rhythmic breaths. 

How was any of this going to work? Something was going to wrong...

And yet, I couldn't help thinking that it wasn't absolutely perfect. I finally had found a friend who wasn't at least five years older than me. I'd have someone to relate with...sort of. There would still be a huge rift between us. He'd had a normal life, and I hadn't. I'd always known the truth...he hadn't. I'd always be one step ahead of the game, and he wouldn't. I'd always be the teacher, and he'd always be the student.

I took another deep breath. Breath. Breathe breathe breathe. Just breathe. Let yourself worry about it when the time comes, but don't concern yourself with it now. 

The next several days passed in a blur. Things were dull, but there was an anxious buzz in the air. Everyone was waiting for the muscles to be rebuilt, for clothing to finally get shipped in, for the final touches to be made. Finally, the pins were taken out of Murdoc's body. I don't know if he was awake for the procedure or not; I didn't witness it. 

In fact, I hadn't even so much as looked at him since when he first arrived. I was giving him as wide a berth as possible. I didn't want to seem too smitten with him. That would lead to instant ridicule, then my parents would get involved with it, and it would just become one whole awkward mistake.

Although, while I'm on the subject of couples, I must note that Carmen and Notton have become *much* closer since the killings...no, murders of Scrylla and Prait. They are hardly seen without the company of the other, and Morpheus told me that they reminded him of my mother and father when Dad had first joined the ship. I thought it was nice, how the two had found comfort in the other during such times. But it just made things a little more weird; everyone was pairing up, save Morpheus Tank, Doc, and me. It was obvious that males far outweighed the females, but I don't think anyone minded.   
After spending my whole life with Morpheus, I gathered that he was too in love with his ship and his life's work to ever concentrate on a woman. Perhaps he had tried, many years ago, but once he found the Neb, no woman would ever be able to catch his attention.

I remember long ago someone telling me that Tank had a love in Zion, but perhaps that was a long time ago. No one's mentioned anything since. As for Doc, I know that for a fact he had had a wife in Zion for twenty-three years, but she died of Dysentery. It was during the Great Famine; when I was six, the Machines got hold of some of Zion's food import cities. Though the cities were tiny, almost non-existent, they still provided the vital things needed for Zion. When the Machines took hold, it caused a famine. Many died of starvation, mal nutrition, the list goes on and on. Doc's wife was one of those victims, which is partially why he was so eager to join the Neb. He'd been moving from ship to ship, and finally he'd settled on the Neb as his personal home.

So that left me. I was the only eligible 'bachelor' left. And since Murdoc was my age, it would only be natural...

I shook my head. No. You're letting them control you again. It was hard, since everyone on the ship was so close. You usually did what the others expected of you, whether it was verbally announced or not. But I always tried to listen to what *I* wanted to do. And so far, it had worked. Unless it was specifically told to me to do something, I did whatever the hell I felt like doing.

I had been sitting at the Matrix console, spacing off and getting lost in my thoughts while watching the falling green letters. A hand on my shoulder. I turned around.

"The _Consuela_ is here." said Morpheus' voice. "It's bringing supplies."

"Why did we have to have it transported when we could just go into Zion?" I asked. Some of Morpheus' orders were strange, and I didn't agree with them at all.

"You heard me earlier. If you'd like to come, you can. Otherwise, I'd like to watch over Murdoc." 

The thought of watching Murdoc sleep made the muscles in my stomach clench, and I wanted to do that badly. But the thought of seeing outsiders was by far more enticing, so I got up and followed Morpheus.

Walking behind him, we came to about midway on the ship on the bottom deck. Beneath us was the trap door that opened below so the arm could reach down and grab the people we had freed. That very arm was resting in coils not too far away. 

I stepped back so I was off the flap. I didn't feel like falling to my death or worse, being taken by Machines today. A whirring sound suddenly came from below and around us, and the flaps gave way, folding downward and out.

The form of another great ship was slowly rising towards us, and a door was opening on its hull. The ship was then touching ours, the two windows to the outside meeting so there was no space at all. A resonating clicking sound said that the two ships had locked.

More sounds, this time of feet climbing the metallic wrung of a ladder were coming from the Consuela. And then, a new face appeared. This one belonged to a man with shocking blonde hair and growth on his chin. His eyes were like pale sapphires and he was built similar to Tank. I didn't see any plugs, so I figured he was from Zion as well.

Behind him were several more men, and they each had packages with them. Some were large, metallic barrels that I could only guess held the nourishment we ate everyday as well as water. The others were boxes that looked like they were made from either thick cardboard (something very rare in the Real World these days), or a very thin wood. It was most likely the latter, and I surmised that these held clothing. I was glad. The wide legged pants and heavy sweater that I wore everyday, though warm and comfortable, were getting quite old. The pale gray pants were starting to itch me and the light blue sweater was starting to smell. We were hardly ever allowed to wash our clothing, because that would require water and water is one of the bare essentials of life, so we took great care of our clothing. Mine had several stains on it, but nothing incredibly noticeable. It suddenly felt like the Christmas' my mother had told me about as a child.

The pale eyed man with the blonde hair put out a muscular arm and Morpheus put out his own, pumping hands. 

"We've brought the supplies, Captain Morpheus." the man stated. I thought he needn't said that since it was quite obvious. "Is there anything else you'll be needing?"

"No, Zephyr. That will be all. My crew and I thank you deeply."

"How's the new member?" the man called Zephyr asked, trying to make small talk.

"He's recovering. We've finished rebuilding his muscles, and right now he's sleeping it off. He should be recovered by tomorrow, and when he's finished uploading we'll be going into Zion." 

Zephyr nodded. "If that's all, Morpheus, we'd better be off. The Legion is asking that all ships try and dock as quickly as possible. It's something important. In fact, they told me to tell you to hurry it up, though in that high and sophisticated way they have of doing things." He gave a small, sideways smile. "They want the One present, just like always. They're pretty upset with you, actually. You've been disobeying them for so long..."

This wasn't news to me. The Legion of Zion was the group of superiors, captains, and so forth that now ruled Zion, and the other tiny cities scattered all over the world. They controlled everything; militia, government, currency, food rationings...everything. Everyone respected them, because they was no one else to turn to if the Legion kicked you out. Everyone, that is, except Morpheus. He had always been given a free reign for two reasons; the first one is because of what the Oracle had foretold of him; that he would find the One. He had succeeded in that, and that's reason number two; the One, and his family were all aboard the Nebechadnezzer. But though many respected the Legion's wishes and orders, they didn't respect the Legion in general. The Legion was called the LZ or the Lazies for short. It took forever to process a request with the Legion, and so many said it was because there was a lot to ruling the free world, but I figured it was just because they didn't care. Either way, the Legion still had lots of power.

Morpheus stayed stationary, as if not responding. "The Legion has made many requests that I do not agree with. As I am captain of this ship and I choose what we do, I will not follow those requests."

Zephyr stared at him, then shrugged. "I wasn't accusing you, just stating a simple fact." He glanced sideways over at his crewmates, who looked at him in return. "We should probably be going now. Please, hurry back though. Otherwise Tulmute will have my ass for breakfast..." he said, and started going back. They carefully lowered themselves back into their own ship, then pulled away. Our lower flaps slowly closed, and the outside world was shut away once more.

Notton, my father, and Tank all carried the containers of food and water to the mess hall. Morpheus, Mom, Carmen and I headed back upstairs, my mother and Morpheus carrying the crates of clothing and blankets.

As soon as we were upstairs, I grabbed the crate from my mother and broke into it, using a nearby tool to pull up the boards. Inside was a bundle of clothing, and I grabbed a handful. Spreading the material before me, I saw that I had pulled a pair of black pants, a black sweater, and a gray undershirt. 

I pulled out more and more handfuls, each in drab colors of black, light grayish blue, and gray. Finally, at the bottom of the second crate, I pulled out a beauty.

It was a thick, warm sweater of a vibrant red. I gasped, pulling it out. We had gotten varied colors on the ship before, but never in red. We'd gotten green, purple, two to three different shades of blue and brown, but never red. The dye for that color was hard to come by. I held the sweater in my hand, staring at it, savoring its softness in my hand.

My mother gently pushed the sweater still in my hands towards me. "Take it." she said. "You always get passed over for the colored clothing. It's yours." 

I reached over and hugged her, and hugged the sweater to my chest. It was so warm! I pulled back and quickly grabbed a pair of black pants, and a gray undershirt, as well as the other underclothes offered. With the bundle of clothing in my arms, I raced for my room. Quickly pulling off my clothing, I pulled on the new clothes. I felt clean and brand new in these new shipments. They were still very large, as all of our clothing came in one size. I rolled the sleeves of the sweater up so that they hung at my knuckles, pulled the drawstring tightly around my waist, and pulled the new pair of foot coverings over my old ones, making my feet even warmer. It was a wonderful feeling, and I wrapped my arms around myself, savoring the warmth. 

In the excitement of the moment, I'd forgotten to eat. Now, my stomach rumbled in protest, and I quickly headed off for the mess hall. Inside, Carmen and Notton sat eating, giggling about something. I flopped down. 

"Nice duds, kid." Notton said, noticing my sweater. I flashed him a smile as I sat down with my food. I started eating it ravenously, and though it felt empty in my system, strength was slowly filling me. Placing my bowl on the tray on my way out, I stopped. An idea had suddenly bloomed in my head.

I quick grabbed another bowl and filled it. Doing the same with a tin cup, I placed these two items and a spoon on a tray and headed out of the room. Walking down the hall with these items I found Murdoc's room and went in.

The only light came from outside. With the door open, a beam of light was thrown over him. He was sleeping on his side, his face visible for me to see. He looked...helpless, as he slept there, breathing in through his mouth with his lips slightly parted. I walked up and placed the tray near him, then turned to leave. 

"What'd you do that for?" asked a sleepy voice behind me. He had woken up.

I could feel the heat rising in my cheeks. "Do what?" I asked, turning back around to face him.

His face was flushed and pale, and he was blinking sleepily in the light. He had lifted himself up onto one elbow so he could see me easier. "That. Why'd you bring me a meal?"

_Keep it cool, Athene. Just keep it cool._ I shrugged. "I just figured you wouldn't want to be bothered with getting up to eat. You've been through a difficult ordeal. I was just being kind."

He nodded and bent down to pick up the tray. Placing the spoon into the goop, he scooped some up and let it fall back into the bowl.

"What is this crap?" he asked me, looking back up at me with a disgusted face. I broke into a smile.

"Ah, the eternal question; what is this shit that we must feast upon? It's amino acids, vitamins and minerals. Everything the body needs." I quipped. Everyone had said this that it was the common response. He spooned some into his mouth, and gagged. 

"Ugh! It's awful!" 

I laughed. "You get used to it, trust me. After living on it for thirteen years, it doesn't bother me any more."

He glanced me over. "You grew up here?"

I nodded. "I'm Neo and Trinity's daughter."

His eyebrows knitted in thought for a moment. "You mean the chick with the short black hair and the other guy?"

I thought this was a very different way of thinking of my parents, but sure. I nodded. "That would be them, yes."

"I'll get to meet them eventually though, right?"

"You'll get to meet some of the people on this ship so much you'll never want to meet them again." I said with a smile. He was so easy to talk to...

He gave a small laugh. "So, will we just live on this ship then, or do we go to other worlds, like Star Trek?"

I thought for a moment. What was Star Trek? Oh yeah...okay, right. "We're not on another planet. We're still on good ol' earth, but it's not so good any more..."

"What are you talking about?" he asked, thoroughly confused.

I shook my head and gave a small smile. "No more for now. Morpheus will tell you everything in time."  
He shook his head and lay back down. "This is such a mind trip. I mean, I'm going to be living the rest of my life with some of the most infamous and mind boggeling computer hackers of my time..."

"You won't see them as computer hackers for much longer. They've moved on from that. There are much more important things to deal with." I suddenly found myself in the room once more, and not just at the door. I was standing near him, close enough to touch him. I didn't.

He sighed. "I can't wait till I know what the heck it is you're talking about. This so confusing...what were those things that I saw? What *was* all of that?"

"The answers will come in time. Just be patient."

He sighed again. "Okay. I'll be patient." A silence passed between us. 

"You know, I never did learn your name." he said suddenly, turning his head to look at me. 

I smiled again. "I am Athene."

He smiled back and held out his hand. "Hello Athene. I'm Murdoc."

I shook his hand. "A pleasure, Murdoc."

He looked as if he might say something, but ended up yawning instead. He put a hand to his mouth. "Sorry. I'm still really tired, I guess."

I blinked sympathetically. "Go back to sleep then. There will be plenty of time for other things later."

He nodded and obligingly lay back down. "Thanks, Athene..." he said before drifting back off again.

I watched him for a moment more, and my heart began to pound slightly. I swallowed, and then headed to leave. With one final look at Murdoc, I shut the door.

A/N: Okay, I hope this was as good as you were hoping for it to be. I pray there aren't as many things wrong with this one as there were in the first part. R and R NO FLAMES! (I'm talking to YOU, Kirstma!) Thanks so much! God bless!


	3. Part III: Revolutions

A/N: Yes, yes, I *know* it took me an eternity to write this, but I've been in a bit of a slum and as you can see, this isn't one of my longer chapters. It'll get better, hopefully. Well, I got some really positive feed back on part two, so I guess I'll just keep going with this one! Surprisingly, no corrections on part two, but I checked through this one lots better, so there wouldn't be. Same disclaimer mumbo jumbo...RandR, no flames! Enjoy! 

Offspring

By: SunGoddess7 

Part III: Revolutions

Two days after my little visit with Murdoc, he was up and moving around. Morpheus gave him the customary tour, as usual. It was his way of showing off all that he commanded. It was almost funny. He got as giddy as a little boy showing off his toys to friends. But no one ever put up a fight with it. Just smiled or nodded when their name was called for introductions.

Murdoc was getting more and more familiar with people. He'd finally figured out how to get to the bathroom without getting lost. He had finally gotten used to the fact that he only got one outfit that would have to last him just about an eternity, and he finally was able to gulp down a bowl of the nutrients without too much ado.

Finally, on about the third day, Morpheus approached him with a small smile. It was time. "Are you ready for the answers and much more than you bargained for?" He asked. 

Murdoc frowned slightly, but nodded anyway. "I...guess so."

"Follow me." Morpheus turned. I glanced over at my mother who was standing not too far away. She gave a slight bob of her head in their direction, and I followed behind Murdoc for the core.

The shock had started wearing off now that he'd seen it several times before. Morpheus gestured to one of the suspension chairs, and Murdoc got in uneasily. Once he had sat down, I walked over and strapped him in. 

"Is this going to hurt or something?" He asked, eyeing me nervously. I said nothing, because I had just finished buckling the last strap. I stepped back and his eyes met mine. Those pale sapphires bore into my eyes, and I tried not to blink. His eyes were full of fear and uncertainty, and he looked like a lost child in a way. My heart started thumping against my ribcage, and I looked away, heading over to stand behind Tank and watch the monitors. 

Tank typed in codes and I watched his fingers fly across the keys. Both Murdoc and Morpheus were in the construct, and their forms were quite stationary in the blank screen. White snow and streaks raced across the screen at times and fuzzed the image, but otherwise, it wasn't that entertaining. Morpheus was taking Murdoc through the same old song and dance. Telling him the truth, showing him our image of the real world. It was nothing new to me. I wasn't paying attention to Morpheus though; I was watching Murdoc.

He seemed to take the news fairly well. When it was all over, he merely clasped his hands together behind him and hung his head. He looked like a man who was lost, and didn't know what to accept or believe anymore. It made my heart ache for him. This was far worse than watching him yell or scream or fight it like everyone else had. This helplessness was horrible and I had to avert my eyes. When he had finally come back I walked back over and silently pulled the spike from his head, and he took in a sharp breath. Undoing the straps, I started to walk away but he grabbed my arm and sat up.

"How can you live with this? How could you have grown up knowing that the human race's days were numbered?"

Again, his eyes were searching mine and I could feel them probing into my mind. I blinked, and wriggled my arm free from his grasp. For some reason, tears were pricking my eyes. I couldn't figure it out, but I hastily wiped them on the bright red of my sweater and hurried for my room. I met no one in the halls, but when I finally reached my door I stopped. Resting my forehead against the door, the cold metal cooled my warm skin. I leaned my whole body against it, and the cold seeped through my thin clothes and started to calm down slightly.

I didn't go into my room. Instead, I went for my corridor. I sunk down against he metal to the floor, collapsing in an exhausted heap. Folding my arms over my knees I rest my head against my forearms. It was getting harder and harder to sleep in my room. I would sit and stare at the ceiling for hours, and it seemed as if the walls were closing in on me. I was becoming more claustrophobic by the night, and I found that I could sleep just about anywhere now but my quarters. It was weird, yes, but I needed sleep.

I must have been more tired than I thought, because I was suddenly dreaming, and it was the same dream I had had before, only this time the Agent was further away from me. 

"Athene...Athene..." He was saying over and over again in a cruel chant, the gun leveled at my chest. I was unable to move again. The Agent pulled on the trigger, the bullet whizzing from the Desert Eagle, and I braced myself for the bullet. But it never came, as out of nowhere Morpheus leapt forward and flew past me, the bullet hitting him instead. 

__

"MORPHEUS!" I screamed, and my eyes flew open as I quickly sat up. I had fallen over and had been curled up in a ball on my side when I sprang apart and lifted myself up with my hands. My breathing had quickened and yet again I could feel the now familiar hard pounding of my heart against my ribcage. Quick footsteps reached my ears as Murdoc appeared in my hallway.

"You okay, Athene? I heard you screaming..." he said, looking me over. I closed my eyes and I could feel my face burning with embarrassment. I tried to hide my face somewhat, making sure that he didn't notice.

"You okay?" He repeated, walking over and sitting down next to me. I didn't trust myself with words at that moment, so I merely nodded. 

"You don't look okay. You look really pale..." he said, putting one hand on my face and turning it so I faced him. My heart went from pounding to fluttering, and my stomach churned. His eyes were probing mine again. Those eyes...

"Maybe you should get some sleep," He said, matter-of-factly, dropping his hand from my face. I nodded and ran a hand through my hair. For the first time since I was jolted awake, I noticed that it was ratty and slightly soaked in sweat.

"I try. But...I can't," I said quickly. I had almost told him about the dreams, but I didn't think that was important. Mostly I didn't feel he needed to know.

"You can't? Maybe you should go into the Matrix a little more often. That uploading is better than warm milk for me. I'm so exhausted by the time I'm done." 

"That usually happens. You're still weak, physically, and since your mind makes all that you do real you come back feeling tired. It was the same way for me," I explained in a monotone voice similar, I suddenly realized, to the one that my father had used when talking about his family. I pursed my lips and stared pointedly at the ground.

I could feel his eyes watching me, observing my every move, but I was too tired to care. I hugged my knees to my chest and then rested my chin on my knees, rocking back and forth slightly. I could hear him breathing.He got up then and left for the door, but stopped and turned to face me. He opened his mouth to say something, ended up closing it again, swallowed, and then tried once more. "I'm going to get something to eat. I think you just need something to chow on. Maybe...you should come with me?" He said in an almost careful voice, as if talking to a potentially dangerous animal. I blinked stupidly, staring at him. Our eyes were locked again, and I couldn't help but marvel at how easily this happened. Finally, I blinked again and nodded. 

My legs ached and my knees were filled with pain with every step, but I walked on as if everything was okay. I followed him to the Mess Hall and sat down at the table. Murdoc got me a bowl and filled it, and placed a spoon gently next to the bowl. I stared at its not-so appetizing contents. It seemed to fester there, not moving at all. I blinked at it. Murdoc sat down across from me, eating from his own bowl but never taking his eyes off of me. I didn't look up, just stared at the food in the bowl. I stared so long, I began to see shapes in the slushy gruel.

"I think you're sick," he said finally, his diagnosis breaking the silence.

I rolled my eyes. "Thank you for pointing out the obvious. I don't think I could have gotten that one on my own."

He spread his palms in a defeated manner. "Well, I don't know what else could be wrong. Doc should give you a look over. You look like shit," he said. 

'Oh, thanks,' I thought sarcastically. I finally brought my gaze up to meet his.

"I surmised that much. I think I just need a change of scenery. Maybe I'll have Tank get me into a soothing construct or something," I said, and now even I could hear the exhaustion in my voice. I stood up to leave.

Murdoc stood up. "I could go with you, if you want."

I shook my head. "Thanks for offering, but no. I need to think."

could feel that penetrating stare on me once more, but finally he nodded. "Okay. See you soon, then," he said, sitting back down and starting to eat. He looked almost disappointed, and I felt bad for him.

"You could see me off," I offered, and then I heard just how stupid that sounded. I immediately regretted it. He looked back up, shrugged a shoulder and then stood back up again. "I haven't seen enough to know what a good setting would be, anyway," I said, explaining in a way. Again, what little knowledge I had of Matrix's concepts showed, and I felt stupid. 'Man, I suck at this,' I couldn't help thinking, my pride showing once more.Together we went to the core, and there sat Tank at the console. 

"Tank," I said, approaching him. He looked from the monitors to Murdoc and me. "I need you to load me into a construct. Just...something soothing. Where I can be alone." 

Tank gave me a strange look, raised an eyebrow, then shrugged. "Okay, sure. Got anything in particular picked out?"

"That's why I'm here," Murdoc said, stepping forward slightly. I went over to a suspension chair and sat down. Murdoc bent over me, adjusted the straps and inserted the spike. I was then in the white room, in the same outfit I had been in when I went to pick up Murdoc. 

I looked around me, staring into the depths of the nothingness. And then, it seemed as if there was some kind of oasis miles and miles away from me, rushing to surround me, and suddenly I was in the midst of a place I didn't know, until finally the word "_beach_" surfaced in my mind. Looking down at the ground, I saw that my clothes had changed so now I was in a breezy, lightweight "_skirt_" that swirled around my ankles like liquid with every step, and my feet were bare of any kind of covering, submersed in silky white "_sand_." A gentle, warm breeze blew my skirt forward slightly, and carried the faint scent of salt with it. Looking out, turquoise-blue "_ocean_" spread on for miles outward. 

Looking around completely, I saw that not too far off was a small hut, surrounded by palm trees that swayed gently in the wind. From somewhere far off, the cry of "_seagulls_" reached my ears. I went into the hut.

It was bare except for a suspended net that I realized was called a "_hammock_". I guess that's where I would be sleeping. Deciding that I wasn't going to sleep, I went back outside and sat down right at the edge of the beach, and the water lapped and tugged at my toes. 

I closed my eyes, trying to loose myself. I didn't know what was bothering me so much, but I was bothered anyway. It was just a few things, and yet it was a million things all at once. Worries and bothers swirled around my head, and I tried to filter them.

The biggest and most important worry right now was the dreams. In all of them, I was cornered by an Agent, unable to move, but I had always woken up before I was shot. Now, this recent addition of Morpheus taking the bullet frightened the wits out of me.

Then, there was Murdoc. I didn't know what to make of him at all. Was he interested, or did he just see me like a sister? Or maybe not even a sister, perhaps it was just a crewmate. I didn't know. At times it seemed as if he cared deeper than just a friend, but then he went right back to being friend-like. I felt drawn to him, and I knew that I cared for him better than just a shipmate, but things were so complicated. 

'What am I so scared of?' I asked myself, digging my fingers into the sand, gathering handfuls and squeezing them, the grains running between my fingers, but I knew. I had always known. I was afraid of what it might mean, for me to love him. We were living in such dangerous times. To love is like to put your heart on the cutting board. Nothing was certain anymore, and people were living from day to day. I was afraid of getting hurt, of loosing him. I closed my eyes and drew a deep breath, my eyebrows deeply furrowed. How was this ever going to work? Or, more puzzling yet, _was_ it ever going to work?

The sea breeze gently lifted my hair, pushing it away from my face, and seagulls continued to shout their shrill cry. I pursed my lips, which were now dry and tasted salty. I was glad to be away from the ship. 

"You have a good taste when it comes to soothing places, Murdoc," I said quietly to no one, the only reply coming from the gulls, who couldn't understand what I was saying. And yet, I wasn't soothed. I had expected to come here and have all of my problems melt away, but found that I was even more troubled. 

'Great,' I couldn't help thinking. 'More sleepless nights ahead.' I was going to be screwed the next time we went in.

I ran a hand through my hair and sighed. I almost wished I hadn't been able to get plugged in. Almost. Still, this was far better than just the ship to sort my thoughts out on. Our next mission was coming up, I knew it. Morpheus was just putting it off out of respect for the dead. And then there was still Zion.

Ah, Zion! That problem had now resurfaced in my mind. How well would I put up? The city would be a nut house with the One and his family in town, and there would be slews of people clamoring to see us. I wouldn't mind it too much, I guess, but it would still be a nuisance. I'd try not to let it bother me too much.

What was really getting under my skin with the whole Zion issue was the fact that they would want to poke and prod me like some kind of science project. That's what they had done to Dad the first time he came to Zion. They were trying to determine what it was that made him the One, and if they could duplicate it or perhaps transplant it into another human. It had angered the whole crew, for they gave him no privacy at all, and kept him long into the night. That's why Dad had never gone back. That's also why I was never allowed in. They didn't want the same thing to happen to me.

I was grateful though. I didn't want to be viewed as some kind of virus that could just be put under a microscope and then observed for as long as they needed. I'm a human being, for crying out loud! No human being deserved to be treated that way.

Before I knew it, I had started to drift off, because when I woke up my surroundings had changed. It was dark, and the sea continued to sprawl before me like a giant velvet blanket, the sky mirroring that image but with diamonds dotting its surface, sparkling and glittering in different constellations and galaxies. 

I blinked and rubbed the sleep from my eyes. Standing up, I stretched. I felt stiff and it was hard to move. I had been curled up for a long time, I guess. I was ready to go back. I felt slightly refreshed now that I had gotten a good bout of sleep, even if it never really existed. It had rested my mind, and that's the one organ that needed the most sleep of all. 

But then I realized I had no way of getting back. I looked up to the endless sky, the orb of white light being the moon shining above me and casting white moonlight all around. 

"I'm ready to go back now, Tank!" I shouted to the night sky, feeling only slightly stupid. "Hello? Can you hear me? I'm ready to go back n-" I was about to finish my sentence when a ringing suddenly sounded. I whipped around. It was coming from the hut. Going inside, the ringing got louder. Feeling my way through the darkness, I found a phone, and answered it.

After another wild ride back to reality, I still felt exhausted. My mother was un-strapping me and pulling the spike out of the back of my head. It didn't hurt anymore and I barely felt it leave my head. Getting up, I was groggy. Mom grabbed my hand and steadied me.

"Sleep well?" She asked, smiling kindly at me. I nodded, but couldn't suppress a yawn. She nodded back at me, then started off on her own way once more, so I was left alone. I started to go back to my own room, but decided to make a detour and headed for the bridge, and found who I was looking for.

Morpheus sat at the controls, alone, staring out over the distance. I sat down in the co-pilot's chair and stared out as well. 

"How close are we?" I asked, referring to Zion.

"Only a few more hours," he said quietly, almost serenely.

"So soon? Have you alerted the crew yet?" 

He nodded. "While you were still in the Construct. They already know."

"What did Murdoc say?"

He smiled slightly. "He was excited, but his joy can't even be matched to Tank's. He's ecstatic." 

I nodded. It figured. Tank would be going home. He was so lucky.

"What are our arrangements?"

"They have already been made. Special rooms have been made up in the usual barracks at the Training Center. You will not be disturbed very often."

I swallowed. Zion was split into four different sections, the largest being the Metropolis. This is where the few food, clothing, and other essential stores were located. The other three were the Suburbs -- where all homes were located -- Farming/Manufacturing -- where most products were either made or grown -- and Militia. 

The Militia is where Zion's entire arsenal was located, as well as the Zion Training Center. This is where all new recruits were brought to either be uploaded if they had recently been released and hadn't had this done to them already. Mostly it was for physical training for the citizens of Zion, who, not possessing any holes, would not be able to have the information merely uploaded into their brains. They would have to go through years and years of both physical as well as tactical training. 

Even though I had just slept for God knows how long, I felt far more tired than I had going in. I went to my chambers and stretched out on the stiff mattress. Surprisingly, I fell asleep, and by the time I woke up I found the whole back half of the ship full of everyone but Morpheus and Tank. They were at the front entering the codes to get into Zion. We were going in. I was going to see home.

Home. What a strange, unusual word it was. Home to me was the faint scent of gasoline that lingered about the ship at all times. Home was the freezing cold steel and encasing pipes; sloppy nutrients and only semi-clean water. Home was so strange and weird that had anyone else suddenly been thrust here, it would be impossible for him or her to feel the same way. But this was it. This is where I had grown up for the past thirteen years. This strange and completely "un-homey" surrounding was far more home to me than any normal household. 

My family was comprised of my biological family: Mom and Dad. Neo and Trinity. But it was also comprised of so many other people. Warriors, soldiers, fighters in the Cause. People who kicked such ass in another place were my family. The people that I love and had loved. 

I suddenly smiled at just how screwed up my life really was. 

Several minutes later Tank appeared in the back with us, grinning from ear to ear. "Welcome to Zion, ladies and gentlemen." 

Everyone around me smiled, and I couldn't help the grin that was spreading across my face as well. We headed to the middle of the ship, and at to the right side. A small door stood, almost completely rusted shut. Tank stepped forward and, with a little help from Dad, shoved the door to the side and slowly the door opened, and a dim light poured into the ship. 

I slowly stepped out, wishing I had about a hundred more eyes so I could take in more of the sights. We were in what was like a giant hovercraft hangar, and surrounding us were several other ships, but the thing that stood out most in my mind were the people. There were tons of other people, each working at the ship, making adjustments. My cheeks were starting to tingle from grinning so broadly. I tried to stop, but it was impossible. 

A man in clothes of a very fine quality and clad in deep navy blue approached us looking very stately and in charge. He held out a hand to Morpheus.

"Welcome to Zion, captain. We hope you and your crew," at this his eyes instantly moved over to my father. "Will enjoy themselves while staying here." His gaze lingered on my father just long enough to make him shift uncomfortably. Dad looked down at the ground. 

"Follow me. I've had a special building cleared for your use." We followed behind him in a line with me between my mother and father. 

We passed by more and more ships, still encased in metal. People stopped their work and stood staring at us, following us with their heads and eyes, mouths dropped, not trying to conceal their awe. I swallowed, and the bottom dropped out of my stomach. It felt as if I was on display for something, which I sort of was. The longer it took for us to get to the barracks where we would be staying, the more obvious it became that the general was taking the "scenic route" so he could show us all off to his underlings. It made me slightly angry, but I let it slide.

We climbed several flights of stairs before we came to what I assumed to be the top floor. It was a short corridor, with four doors similar to those on the Neb. A large window rested at the ended of the hallway, and as the others dispersed to their rooms I continued to the window. I placed my forehead against the cool glass and looked out. Squat boxes of metal sprawled before me, and just along the horizon I could make out faint traces of an almost greenish color that I could only assume showed where the Farming country started. Tiny lights lined the buildings and streets, shedding light to the people below. It was night all day long here.

I turned around and started to walk for a door that would be my room when I suddenly froze. There were four rooms. I knew Tank and Doc had already left to go home. My mother and father would obviously share a room, and Morpheus, of course, had a room of his own. Carmen and Notton would have probably wanted to share a room, which left....

I squeezed my eyes shut and sighed. How did I _know_ this was coming? I walked up to each door and opened it slightly, checking to see which one held Murdoc. Seeing his form standing at the back of the room, I pushed the door open further and walked in. It creaked, and he turned and grinned shyly at me.

"Guess we're sharing a room, huh?"

I half smiled back at him. "Yep. Guess so. I'll take the floor. I've practically been sleeping on one for the past thirteen years."

He laughed a little. "Okay, if you're sure."

I nodded, and started to look around. A small hallway led from the door and opened up into a huge room. I felt my jaw drop slightly at the sheer size. It was like a sitting room, only very formal and stiff. Ratty furniture (but really just two chairs) sat in the middle of the room, and off to the side was a kitchenette, but this was fruitless, as there was never anything to cook anyway. I frowned but turned away. 

Off to the right of the room was a door. I went over and opened it. Inside it was a very small bedroom, but it was much larger than my room on the Neb. A large mattress sat with the thinner end, which I could only assume to be the head, pushed against the wall. I shut the door and backed out, going back to the sitting hall and flopping into one of the chairs. I felt exhausted somehow. I guessed it was because of the adrenaline rush of arriving here, and now that we were here, the anxiety was wearing off. That was the practical explanation. Murdoc sat down in the other chair.

"It's something, isn't it?" He said, indicating the room. "Who would have thought that such a large place could exist with the Machines crawling all over the place?"

"The man who started the town was an incredibly intelligent, bright man," I said in a slight monotone. Murdoc nodded, looking at the floor. There was a heavy silence in the room, as he continued to stare aimlessly at the floorboards, and I just sat back at closed my eyes. Finally, he spoke.

"Do you-" he started to say, then stopped, and tried again. "Why do you think they put us in the same room?"

I sighed and squeezed the bridge of my nose. "My parents are trying to manipulate us both. Of course they want us to be happy, and I guess this was the most subtle way they could think of making that obvious," I couldn't keep the annoyance out of my voice. "I'm going to give my father a good tongue lashing for this though, you can be sure of that."

He laughed again. "It is a bit annoying, I guess. And you're right: this wasn't exactly the most inconspicuous way of going about things. I just kind of felt this pressure whenever we were on the ship, you know? I saw everyone paring up all over the place, and I could just feel everyone's eyes turn in our direction, expecting us to be next. Did you ever feel that way?" He asked, turning to face me. I looked at him out of the corner of my eye.

"Actually, that's _exactly _how I felt. I'm glad I'm not the only one." I responded, not feeling so tired anymore.

"I kind of feel like those pandas that the Chinese kept putting into the zoos, trying to make them mate and breed. Of course, I really don't seriously think your parents are trying to make us breed," he added hastily. "That would just be creepy."

I smiled in spite of myself. "That sounds more like something Tank would pull. And somehow I think he did; only that was a little more along the lines of with Notton and Carmen. He's like my big brother, so I hope he wouldn't do something like that to me."

"I just hope they won't disturb us..." he said slowly, glancing over at the wall that we shared with Carmen and Notton's room. He grinned a mischievous smile and I groaned, burying my face in my hand. Underneath my palm, I was trying to suppress a smile.

"Ugh, now you've given me a really bad mental image. Shame on you!"

He laughed. "Sorry. It was irresistible." He clapped his hands together. "So, what is there to eat around here? Or is it the standard shit that we have to eat on the Neb?"

I could only shrug. "Beats me. I haven't been in here since I was a couple months old."

He snorted. "No way. You're pulling my leg."

I shook my head slowly and half-smiled. "Nope. They wouldn't let me in after the fiasco that happened. They kept trying to run tests on me and Dad and it drove Morpheus nuts, so after that, Morpheus just stopped letting us in. From then on it was just Morpheus that went in to restock or get repairs done."

Murdoc shook his head and leaned back in the chair. "God. You were a celebrity before you even knew it."

I shrugged. "When your dad is the only one who can determine the fate of the human race, it's just a little difficult not to be well known. You're going to be a celebrity now, too, you know. Anyone and everyone who's been part of the Nebuchadnezzar crew and thus has rubbed elbows with the One becomes and instant celebrity."

He smiled a little. "Well that'll be a first. Never been a celebrity before."

There was a knock at the door. We both turned to look before I stood up and opened it. Outside stood Carmen.

"We're going to the Med wing. They need to scan us for bugs and viruses. You too, Murdoc," she said, leaning in further and spotting him. "Gotta hurry too. I hear it's quite the walk."

I waited for Murdoc to catch up before shutting the door behind him and then following behind Carmen to the end of the hall where the rest of the crew was already waiting. Silently, we headed down the endless, maze-like hallways of the Military building. It seemed to take hours before we finally arrived at a long, white corridor. It seemed as if I touched anything it would be soiled, so was the hue of white. I kept my hands as close to my body as possible and even tried to breathe quieter. There was an air of foreboding over the entire place.

"I feel like I'm going to get my booster shots or something," Notton commented, looking around with a slightly apprehensive look on his face. I thought for a moment. Booster shots. Right. Of course. The doors before us opened and we stepped through.

It was like the Med wing on the Neb, except ten times more advanced and sterile looking. Everything was white or metallic. Very stately. Very high-tech. 

Stopping as one, a woman with short brown hair approached us. She had thin, black-rimmed makeshift glasses on that she looked at us over, making her look a lot older than she probably was, which was about twenty by my guesses. She was in a stiff, white lab coat and held a metal clipboard to her side.

"I'm Zel, and I will be your medical attendant today. If one of you will come with me, we'll start the scanning now. You will each be going individually, and if you will be so kind as to not touch anything while you are waiting for your turn," she said briskly, with an air of authority to her voice. She sounded a lot older, too. 

"Now, will Captain Morpheus please come forward, and we will begin," she said. Morpheus stepped from the group and followed the woman through the first room and through a set of doors to our right. I waited in the room with my parents, Notton, Carmen, and Murdoc. It was incredibly boring. I was too afraid to touch anything that looked even remotely interesting. Somehow I knew that woman would know I had, and would totally bust me. No one spoke, and the room was deathly silent except for the humming of the lights above and the buzzing of some distant machines. We stood around silently, shifting uncomfortably and waiting.

When Morpheus came back, he looked nonplussed, so I didn't know what to expect. Next went Carmen, then Notton, then my mom. When Zel got to my dad's name, she started, squinted at the paper, then shook her head and said it again, looking up. Dad didn't look too happy about this, and I actually thought I saw a slight tinge of red coming over his face. It made me smile. I'd always seen my father as some kind of almost benevolent being, always there for me, but never one of us. Seeing him almost blush made him look a lot more human, and I loved him all the more for it. After Dad went, it was my turn. I was thankful and happy to have something to do again. I followed her through two more sets of doors before having to stop in a short holding room.

"You will need to be scanned before entering the medical room. Please stand with your arms held out like this-" she demonstrated, putting her arms out and looking like a bird. It looked kind of funny, but I was afraid to laugh, so I just did what she told me to do. Two more medics had suddenly appeared and were holding what looked like huge guns, only with elongated ends. They ran them all over my body and doing what I assumed was "scanning." I knew they had finished when one of the medics nodded and I was allowed to enter the next room.

It was still all white but a metal table sat in the middle, not unlike the sick bay on the Neb. I sat on the table while the medics swarmed around, checking me over with countless other devices that I didn't bother getting the names of. They thumped me a couple times on the knees, and tested several other ligaments. I had to do a lot of the stuff that Doc had made me do on the Neb. This time I felt even dumber. Finally, it was all over and I was allowed to go back to the crew. 

"What happens in there?" Murdoc asked me quietly. I shrugged. 

"Nothing, really. They just scan you and have you do a few tests."

He nodded and looked down and away. 

An hour later were all back in our quarters, not sure of what to do. I had been sitting in the ratty chair, thinking about everything and nothing, when I heard voices in the hallway. Quietly walking to my door and opening it, I looked out. One of the generals was speaking quickly and quietly as possible with Morpheus, Mom, and Dad. I frowned and strained my ears to listen while still striving to be unseen.

"We must talk to them, immediately. The Council has already gathered, and that's a feat in itself. Please, Captain. We request your presence and this is quite the urgent situation."

Morpheus seemed to glare at the man before looking back to my parents. Dad glanced over at Mom before turning back to Morpheus and nodding slightly. Morpheus sighed. "All right then. But I will not have them testing him like some kind of machine like they did the last time we were here. It will not happen again."

The general was already nodding furiously. "You have our word. Now, please, follow me." And they did just that, with one more person in tow; me. I followed behind them stealthily, hiding behind corners and staying in the shadow. They were going upstairs and as we did, the surroundings were getting slightly fancier and nicer. I knew they were going to the main council room. 'Damn,' I thought. 'There's no way I'll be able to hear what they're saying. There's bound to be security all over the place.' But I didn't need to be able to hear them up close as I soon found out.

I sat in the dark around the corner near the solid doors that lead to the room, huddled up and trying to go unnoticed. For fifteen minutes the only things I could pick out were muddled conversation, and the voices started to get louder and louder. Soon I could almost understand Morpheus, though not enough to have any idea what they were discussing.

"Will not...danger...too risky...insane...do you want..." were the only things I could manage to get, and, though the generals were shouting back, their voices were all lost in one big tangle of people talking and I couldn't understand them at all.

What on earth where they talking about?

The shock of finally being in a place other than the Neb was definitely starting to wear off by now, and I was rapidly becoming bored. There wasn't a whole lot to do in the Barracks and most of the time I spent with Murdoc, either playing word games or something that I normally would have raised an eyebrow at. Finally, something exciting happened.

Murdoc and I had been sitting in our makeshift living room, talking about his life in the Matrix.

"Back there I was known as David. I was always kind of the prankster in my class, I guess. Never really got any serious kind of trouble of course, or else I would have had my mom breathing down my back 24/7, but I was no stranger to detention. It got me a lot of friends, being the class clown, but the thrill of pulling a great prank on the teacher was nothing compared the kicks I got from hacking. Man, that was my _life_. I lived to hack. Sometimes I would ditch school just to sit at the computer and go through files because I could. It was a power trip, now that I look back at it, but hey, it got me here, right?" He said, giving a half smile. Suddenly, the door slammed open and in came Notton. We both spun around.

"We're goin' in! C'mon, we gotta be at the core now if we're going to make it."Murdoc and I glanced at each other before jumping up and hurrying after Notton. The core turned out to be not too much different than the one on the Neb, but it was obvious that this one was a lot more advanced. The steel wasn't quite as rusted and used as that on the ship, and the chairs looked as if they were cared for once in a while, except, there were much fewer suspension chairs. This made sense, since most of the previous coppertops were on the pirate ships while only Zioners who had grown up in the Military were sent on the ships. Hardly anyone had a plug out here and no one ever went into Zion anymore. 

Luckily, there was enough so that Mom, Dad, Morpheus, Murdoc and I could go. Carmen, and Notton stayed behind. I wasn't sure were Doc and Tank had gotten to, but something told me they'd gone home to the Residentials.

Sitting down in the chair, I closed my eyes, anticipating the stake to be driven though my head and it was, but it wasn't such a shock as it had been in previous times. Slowly but surely I was getting used to it.

But never entirely.

When we arrived, I wasn't exactly sure where we were, but it looked like some kind of rundown alleyway. Eventually, everyone else materialized around me and down to my left a phone rang in the booth that was suddenly there as well. I ran over and picked up the phone, saying Morpheus' traditional line: "We're in."

Hanging up, I walked back to the group. Again, we were all dressed up in our leathers, the black letting us blend into the shadows. My long black hair had been tamed into a single, thick braid that hung down my back and kept my hair out of my eyes. I'd have to learn how to do this in the real world. It was very convenient.

"I have come to the decision that it is time for you to see the Oracle. Both of you," he added, looking at both Murdoc and I. "Every new recruit is taken to her. She is a guide, and a leader to us all. Trinity," He suddenly looked at my mother. "Bring the car around. Athene, Murdoc, don't be nervous." 

My mother disappeared, then came back several minutes later with a black Lincoln Continental. I got in without question, followed by Murdoc, and my father. Mom was driving, and Morpheus always had front passenger seat. Captain's privilege was my guess. 

Despite Morpheus' announcement not to be nervous, Murdoc still seemed a little twitchy. I couldn't explain it, but he kept jiggling his left leg and his gaze kept darting around the car. 

He was clad in a nice, black button-shirt and black slacks, and looking down, I found myself in a skirt. It was a tight, lamb-leather skirt that went to my ankles, and from there down were boots that were far nicer than the ones that I had worn in here before, and on top I wore a low-cut, long-sleeved shirt. A single, silver cross hung around my neck on a thick, black cord, tying the look together. The only problem I had was with the skirt. It was tight and constricting and I felt I could barely move in the damn thing. I made a mental note to myself to tell Tank never to upload a skirt on me again. 

Finally, we pulled up to a rundown apartment building in a, quite obviously, bad part of town. Mom parked the car and Morpheus stepped out of the car, as did Murdoc and I. In his wireless glasses I could see our reflections mirrored. Murdoc's light, brown hair seemed to stand out even more against his dark attire, and somehow I felt taller than usual. I walked behind Morpheus into the building and tried to keep my walk stiff. The stupid skirt made me feel as if I was shaking my butt all over the place. Not the most attractive feeling in the world, but I felt even dumber with the walk I was using now, so resorted to just trying to not be seen from behind.

We had to climb a flight of stairs before reaching an elevator. The wood walls of the small moving room were carved. Initials, phone numbers, messages and names covered the walls and made a community chat room all around me. I stared at the floor, leaning with my back against the farthest wall from the doors, my legs crossed and waiting for the ride to stop. Finally, with a musical _ding!_ the doors opened and I stepped forward, still being the last in our little line. 

"Do not take what she says as the only way. She is a guide, there to show you a potential path for you to take. But, she knows more than you could know," Morpheus told us before knocking on the door twice. A woman clad in white answered the door and smiled at us. "Hello Morpheus. It's nice to see you again. Athene, she'll be with you shortly. Murdoc, if you'd come with me, she'll see you now."

Murdoc swallowed and his Adam's Apple bounced before stepping over the threshold and following the woman into the depths of the dingy apartment. I followed him in and took in my surroundings. 

A small, old T.V. sat against the wall farthest from me, and a window above that. The carpet was dark brown and shag, and a couch sat against the left wall. Morpheus turned his head to scan the entire apartment.

"They've all left," He said quietly, more to himself than to me.

"Who?" I asked, unable to stop the question.

"Her children. They've been gone for a while, but I still can't get over being here without them being here as well."

I frowned and sat down on the carpet, curling my legs to the side and beneath me, digging my fingernails into the plush. I could hear muffled conversation from the kitchen off to the right, but nothing intelligible. Instead, I merely waited, and I could feel a knot of nervousness start to tie itself in my stomach as well. I couldn't understand why. 

'Of course, going to visit the woman who will clue you in on your destiny could make you just a _bit_ nervous,' I thought sarcastically, and couldn't help but close my eyes and shake my head at my stupidity. I shouldn't let this get to me, shouldn't let it get to me, shouldn't-

"The Oracle will see you now, Athene," a voice suddenly said above me. I started and looked up. The woman in white was smiling down at me, her coffee colored skin crinkled in a kind smile. 

I slowly got to my feet, as the skirt from Hell made this feat very difficult, and then followed behind the woman carefully. She stopped at the front of the opening into the small kitchen while I continued in through the wooden beads that covered the doorway.

"Well, well, well. I've been waiting for this day a long time, Athene," someone said from over to my right. I whipped my head around. A petite, portly woman was sitting at a card-table that was next to the wall, a pair of brightly painted reading glasses perched on her nose along a beaded chain that hung around her neck. She was reading a thick book whose title I could not see, but I suddenly realized she hadn't even looked up.

"Are-are you--?"

She looked up at me and grinned. "That I am. And I'm so glad that this time has finally come." She stood up and looked up at me. She was several inches shorter than I was. Her eyes searched my face, taking me in. "My, my, you look so much like your father..." she said quietly still looking me over before her smile widened. "But you have your mother's spirit. A good combination, if I do say so myself..." 

I wasn't sure what to do, so I merely smiled politely while being unable to filter out the uncertainty that still, no doubtfully, lingered about my face.

"I think you're a little lost, Athene," she said, her voice an amused purr. "Well, all the newbies are. Of course, you know more than almost all of them did at the beginning. You've shown strength to hold that knowledge for so long."

"It's been _too_ long..." I said before I could stop myself, and a revulsion I hadn't meant to come through rang in my ears. 

She chuckled. "Too true, my dear. Too true. I've been waiting as long as you have. Only thing keeping me going is waiting for your father to finish what he's started."

I chewed my lip and looked around. Above the table read a sign in some language I couldn't decipher. If I wanted to, I could have just called Tank and had him upload a languages program, but I didn't feel like it. Not now, anyway.

"So, you're as anxious as anyone to get this thing over with, is that right? I'd say you're right alongside your papa on this one, when it comes to want of victory. Of course everyone wants this over, but it's still a difficult road ahead. Very difficult..."

"What do you mean?" I asked, snapping my attention back to her. She had sat back down again and was pulling the glasses off her face.

"The end is very near now, Athene. The wait is over. But, though it is close, this will be, needless to say, one of the most difficult times you'll ever face. There will seem to be more losses than wins, but in the end, well..."

"Well what?" I asked, my eyes searching her face, probing for an answer.

"_Novus ordo seclorum_. Have you ever heard that before?" She suddenly asked me. I frowned. 

'Why did she suddenly change the subject?'

Shaking my head, she continued. "It's on the dollar bill. It's Latin for 'A new order is rising'. I believe that term can be applied here, though it could be used since the beginning. A new order is rising, Athene, but will you be a part of it?"

"What?" I suddenly burst out. "What do you mean 'will I be a part of it'? I've been a part of it since I was _born_. Why would I stop now?"

She picked up a cigarette that had been smoldering in an ashtray near the book. I thought it a bit risky to smoke and read, but hey, to each his own. She took a long drag and smoke billowed from her lips as she spoke to me, smiling again.

"You've got the same temper as your mother too, I see. I guess I touched a nerve, huh?"

I started to blush in embarrassment. "N-no," I stammered. "I…just...um…"

She chuckled. "Forget about it. I never said it was a bad thing, did I? But, you will have to make a choice, Athene. If I were to give you that choice now, your answer would come quickly, but I can't tell you that choice now. You must wait for the time to come."

I swallowed again, though my mouth had suddenly gone dry. Instead, I frowned. "What is that choice?"

"Like I said, kiddo, you have to wait. Patience is a virtue, you know," She suddenly grinned. "Now, you give your parents some peace and quiet. You're a pretty high-maintenance person. Take it easy."

I nodded and turned out to leave before stopping and turning back to face her. 

"How will I know what the choice is?"

She took a puff of her cigarette once more and got that knowing look once more. "You'll know when the time comes. Trust me."

"Oh, and honey, take care of Murdoc," She said as I was almost out. I stopped and turned around.

"Huh?" I asked, completely bewildered.

"You know he's still new to all of this. Just keep an eye on him. I'm under the impression that he really trusts you," She elaborated.

I frowned, still confused. She laughed and I continued out to join the other two, sighing.

Murdoc stood up as I came into view. He had been squatting on the floor next to Morpheus. 

"You done?" He asked, and I nodded in assent.

"First, before you two tell everything that happened, I must say that whatever was discussed is between you and her. No one else. Understood?" Morpheus suddenly said, standing up as well.

I glanced over at Murdoc, who had both his eyebrows raised. I nodded slowly before he turned around and headed out the door while the two of us followed like a couple of ducklings behind their mother.

__

Novus ordo seclorum. A new order is rising.

God, I hope she's right. 

We headed outside and got into the car. Mom was still there, waiting in the driver's seat with Dad standing in front of the car to the passenger side door, his arms crossed over his chest, his gaze locked on the ground. As we came back into view, he looked up and glanced at Morpheus.

"Everything go okay?" He asked.

I nodded, just wanting to go. Her words had not put me at ease, and I was barely stopping myself from still blushing after what she'd hinted about Murdoc and I. That had been just a tad too much for me, and I felt as if she'd crossed the line. I said nothing though. Morpheus needn't have told me to keep what I knew to myself. There was no _way_ I was telling anyone about that. 

I crawled into the black seat, the skirt sticking to the leather and making my efforts to change how I was seating very difficult. When I'd finally gotten situated, we started to drive down to a street corner where a phone was waiting. I could hear the rings over the noise of the city and the car engine. We parked right at the corner, despite the fact that a small, white square sign with a red 'P' and a black slash through the 'P' stood right in front of us. I snorted, and then turned to get out of the car. Stepping out, the heels of the boots clicking on the cement. God, I would kill for a pair of combat boots right now.

The phone booth continued to ring, and my Dad stepped forward to take the call first. He slowly melded away into nothingness. Mom went next, and just as she was disappearing a bullet whizzed past me. I cried out, and a small hole crashed through the glass of the back of the booth. Murdoc and I whirled around at the same time, and behind us stood an Agent, tall and erect, his Desert Eagle leveled at us, sunlight glinting off his dark sunglasses. 

"Shit!" Murdoc yelled, and as soon as the phone was replaced, he picked up the receiver, shoving at me. "Quick, go!" 

Without thinking, I put the phone to my ear and opened my eyes again in the core of the Barracks. "Murdoc," I suddenly said as I realized that he was still left behind, but minutes later he came back as well. The spike coming out of my head and making me wince, I was pulling off the metal straps from my feet before the chair was all the way lowered. Jumping out, I ran over to Morpheus' chair.

"What happened?" I demanded of Murdoc as he came up right behind me. His eyes were worried and scared and he was licking his lips in nervousness. 

"When-when you'd disappeared, I quick hung the phone up again, and then Morpheus grabbed the phone and pressed it to my ear before I could stop him. I-he might still be in there."

"Oh, Jesus.." I whispered, squeezing my eyes shut.

I felt his hand on my shoulder. "He'll be back. He wanted us to get out. He'll come back. I know it." 

I pursed my lips, still keeping my eyes shut. "Come on, Morpheus..."

Suddenly, a trickle of blood burst from Morpheus' arm. "Oh, shit. They've shot him!" Murdoc cried behind me, his grip on my shoulder squeezing tighter.

"Why can't he use our booth?" I demanded, turning towards the person that was serving as operator.

"They shot through the receiver. He has to find another exit, fast. Jesus, I should have never let you people in there," they guy muttered bitterly, typing on the boards and trying to do something. 

"Get him out of there, dammit!" I murmured, not really to the Operator, more for my own comforting.

Another spurt of blood burst in his leg and tears caught in my throat. "Oh, God. He's going to die," I whispered, letting despair take me over, but just as I said that, Morpheus' eyes flew open. 

"Oh, thank God!" Murdoc sighed, rushing forward to pull out the plug. 

"We thought..."

"I'm much harder to kill than that, you know that, Athene," he said with a small smile.

I smiled back, but it was still tainted with worry. 

"You could have been killed, Morpheus. Why did you do that?" Murdoc asked, his voice stern.

Morpheus rose from his chair, looking as powerful as ever. "Murdoc, my crew always comes before me. And you are in Zion, with Neo. There is no better place to loose your captain than Zion."

"We're not loosing our captain," I said fiercely. Morpheus patted my shoulder. 

"I'm glad you feel so strongly about that, Athene." 

I shook my head, walking away. After all of this, I was very intent on sleeping in my new room, so I headed back that way. The minute I hit the mattress of my bed I was asleep, images of Murdoc, the Oracle, Morpheus and my father swimming around in my head and in and out of my dreams.

The thing that brought me back to consciousness was I felt a pair of eyes on me. I slowly opened my eyes and rolled over. A dark form was silhouetted in the doorway, and a tray of food sat at my bedside.

"Murodc?" I asked, my voice slurred with sleep.

"Sorry I woke you," He said quietly. 

"S'okay. What were you doing?"

"You brought my food that one time, so I thought I'd repay the favor." 

"That's really nice of you, Murdoc. Thank you."

"You okay?"

"Well, that little stunt of Morpheus' didn't help, but yeah, I'm okay."

"I still can't believe he did that. Is he _always_ like that?"

I sat up and swung my legs over the side of the bed to get up. "He's been that way for as long as I can remember. You still haven't heard the story of the One, have you?"

He shook his head. "I know your dad's the One and all, but I still don't get any of it."

"You'll have to ask him to tell you about it some time."

He snorted. "Yeah, right. 'Hey, uh, Neo? You're the One, but why?' Like that wouldn't totally creep him out."

"He told me."

"That's different."

"How?" 

"You're his daughter."

"It still doesn't matter."  
"Of course it does. You are blood relation. You have every right to know."

I shook my head. "It doesn't matter."

He shrugged. "Whatever. I'm going to go look around, see if I can find anything interesting."

"Okay. Maybe I'll join you later."

"Yeah."

He didn't move, though. I sat on the edge of my bed, him almost out the door, and the two of us looking at each other and around the room in silence.

"What did she say to you?"

"Who? The Oracle?"

"Yeah. What did she say?"

I pursed my lips and looked down. "Nothing," I muttered.

He frowned, his eyebrows knitting together. "She told you something. Why won't you tell me?"

"Morpheus said-"

"Yeah, but...Look, if you don't want to tell me you don't have to."

I sighed and leaned back, the back of my head resting against the wall. "She said I'd have to make a choice," I said after a time. 

"Well, that's rather vague, isn't it?" He asked, the smile evident in his voice.

"She said my answer would be obvious now if she asked me, but it would be harder to make when it actually comes."

"Well, let's hope the choice is between some real food and the shit we've still gotta eat. Of course, that choice is really obvious, too."

I couldn't help but grin. "Yeah. Yeah, let's hope so."

__

Editor's note to readers: Please forgive us that it took as long as it did. It took SunGoddess a long while to write this, and it took me extra longer time than it should have to edit it (mainly in part from a certain screw up with Yahoo e-mail. Damn them!). 

Once again, we both humbly apologize to you, and hope you had just as a good time reading this chapter, as SunGoddess had a good time writing it, and I, editing it. We will try to get the other chapters out as soon as possible, just remember: quality always comes first.

-Xenogears


	4. Part IV: Change

****

Offspring

By SunGoddess7

Edited by Xenogears

Part IV: Change

My head was still reeling from the visit with the Oracle. I hadn't been able to sleep at all, and now every bone, muscle and tendon in my body ached with sleep. Murdoc seemed pretty light hearted, so something told me that he got good news. 

Lucky bastard

Sluggishly, I moved with my parents and the rest of the crew to get some food, or what supposedly passed for it. It's the same stuff we ate on the ship, and that made me mad. 

'You'd think they'd have some kind of banquet for us, or something,' I thought.

For once I wish I could take advantage of my father's fame, but after I pondered it for a second, it all made sense. Zion was keeping it quiet. They didn't want riots bursting out in efforts to see my father, or me or my mom. I angrily shoved the food into my mouth.

Exciting events didn't happen until later in the day. Murdoc was trying to teach me to play cards with an outdated laptop he swiped from the Neb. Having fiddled with the thing for hours, he finally wrote a poker program and was now trying to teach me how to play. 

"I was a sucker for poker. Lost a lot of money on the playground that way too," he told me at the beginning with that sly grin. I'm a sucker for that grin of his.

The game made sense, but it was pretty pointless. We played with pieces of stuffing that we tore out of the furniture. Murdoc was beating me by a lot, but, then again, he'd been playing it a lot longer than I had. Well, he thought he played it a lot longer than I had. After all, he'd never actually played the game.

That's when my parents came into my room. It didn't seem like that big a deal, and I was grateful to get an excuse to stop playing. Murdoc had been right; even though he knew that the game didn't really exist, he was still a sucker for it. What really got me was that my mother was wearing a worried look, something I rarely see on her face, and my father had that serious one that he gets every time a new mission comes. I immediately sat back on my haunches and stared at them.

"What's up?" I asked, frowning. My mother looked at my father, but he stayed relatively silent. She took a deep breath.

"Athene, we have to send you to the Center," she said. Her voice sounded like one that you would use if someone had just died. 

I stared at her in blatant disbelief. "What?" I finally blurted out. This could not be happening! The Center? What in God's name would I be at the Center for? I already knew all the stuff that they could teach me! It would be pointless, it would be stupid, it would be--

"They don't know that you have a plug. They think you know absolutely nothing, and they want to train you. They figure that the One's daughter should know something about combat," she continued haltingly. I continued to stare at her.

"But--but can't Morpheus just tell them no? Can't he--"

"We don't want to make waves," my father said quietly, speaking for the first time. "Morpheus is in enough trouble with the Legion as it is. We're sorry, Athene. Please, we're not trying to punish you..." He trailed off, at a loss for words.

I swallowed. I felt like a deflated balloon, with all the helium pushed out. The high of being in Zion and being with Murdoc and everything immediately left my blood stream. Reluctantly, I nodded. 

"We're sorry," my mother said again, and I knew she truly was. "You'll still be able to come back at night, though. We got that one for you..." she said, her voice now sounding hopeful, like she was trying to cheer me up. My poor, deluded mother. I just nodded again.

Later in the day, a lanky from the Center came to pick me up. I followed him down more twisted hallways, but I wasn't paying any attention at all. I was in a daze, and everything seemed to kind of melt together and go in slow motion. It was like some kind of dream, but not a good one. It was a nightmare.

We finally reached a door with a large, yellow and black sign above it that read 'Zion Cadet Training Center'. We entered.

Inside, a large of young adults were congregated before a large, beefy man who was pacing the front of the room. He was talking about something, but I had come in so late in the speech that I was completely lost. 

The lanky took me right up to the man, who stopped his speech to find out what was going on. The beefy man searched the lanky for an explanation, who gave a shaky one. The larger man narrowed his eyes at me. The lanky turned to leave almost immediately, but stopped right next to me and whispered into my ear "That's Sergeant Talder," on his way out. He was almost running. 

"So…you're Neo's kid, huh," Sergeant Talder said, an amused and almost cruel grin lighting his face. Instantly the strict air of discipline demonstrated among the cadets was thrown out the window as mutters and whispers broke out. My face burned and I struggled not to grimace.

"Shut up, all of you! This isn't an ice cream social here!" Talder shouted, and instantly every mouth snapped shut and each boy stood tall and straight at attention. None of them even dared to speak, let alone open their mouths. The beefy sergeant gave me an appraising look that made me feel even more uncomfortable than I already did.

"Fox!" Talder barked, not taking his eyes off of me. Immediately a boy, or rather, a man, with short dark auburn hair and a calm demeanor stepped forward. "Fight her," He said in an amused voice that matched his smile.

This Fox looked me over as well, and a smile, similar to Talder's, only much less visible, crossed his lips. My blood started to boil. So he thought he was better than I was? Ha! I knew ten times more than he did, and I didn't have to waste half my life learning it, either! There was no way he could beat me in combat. I almost felt sorry--

My thoughts were cut short as his fist flew at my face with dead point accuracy. At the last possible second I ducked, throwing out a leg to trip him, but he easily jumped over it, kneeling in mid air and meaning to crash down on me. I quickly rolled away and pushed myself up, attacking from behind, but he caught me. Trying to catch his face with my fists, I swung, and he blocked that one, too. With both my fists caught in his grip, I used him for support, jumping into the air and bringing my knees to my chest.

Ready to bring my feet down right in his face, he saw the triumph in my eyes and instantly let go, making me fall to the ground, my knees still drawn up and digging into my chest. I grunted as I hit the ground. 

Every punch I threw, he countered. Every kick I made, he caught and gave me three in its place. I could almost feel the bruises forming on my midsection.

I was tiring quickly. Throwing out another half-hearted punch, he took advantage of my weakness, and caught my fist in his hand and twisted my arm around my back. I tried to elbow him in the face, but he wrapped his arm around my other one, and then entwined his ankles around mine. I was completely immobile.

Talder chuckled. "Okay, Fox. You're done."

"Not quite," I muttered in a venomous tone, low enough so only Fox and I could hear. I jumped out with both legs, making him fall backwards. I landed on my back on top of him, knocking the wind from his chest. Just as I was getting up, though, he hooked his ankle around mine again, and I fell, face first, to the floor, a sharp pain shooting up from my nose. One word formed in my mind besides the curses: De-nied. 

A hand reached down in front of my eyes, and I grabbed it. Blood gushed from my nose, and I put the sleeve of my free hand beneath it to stem the flow, while still being hoisted up by whomever it was that had helped me. Looking up, I saw it was a girl.

The first female face I'd seen since I'd arrived here. My face would have lit up, had I not been bleeding.

"Don't worry about that," She whispered, giving me a kind half-smile. "He's the big-shot around here. Name's Krypta," She said, putting out her hand to shake. I took hers and started to explain who I was, but she cut me off.

"No need. I already know who you are." 

We had backed back into the crowd of boys again, and all of them were looking me over, but this time with slight sneers on their faces. My blood boiled again, and I wanted to go and beat the tar out of them, but I figured now was not the time, because Talder had started speaking to me again in that blaring, dominating voice of his.

"So, you think you know everything just because your parents are part of the prophecy, huh?" Talder said, his voice a sneer. I wanted to scream at him. To tell him that No, that's not true! but instead, I said nothing. 

"You think somehow that makes you better than the rest of us, right? Well guess what?" He asked, and then bent to stare me right in the face. I could obviously tell he hadn't bothered to brush his teeth that morning.

"You're wrong," He said before pulling back again. I was taking shuddering breaths now, my fists balled up behind me. "Fox beat you because of physical strength. The Matrix only requires mental strength. Well, we don't use any of that mind-over-matter-cock-and-bull that you pirates do. We use BRUTE STRENGTH!" He bellowed the last two words, and I jumped slightly in my space, but everyone else seemed nonplussed. 

"In the Matrix, it doesn't matter how strong you really are, it just matters that you know exactly what the hell you're doing. But guess what, sweetheart? Out here, you have to have muscle. You have to know exactly what the hell you're doing, and you have to have the strength to actually carry out that task! Fox beat you because he has the physical strength, and you don't." He finished in his condescending tone. I wanted to shove my foot so far up his butt that he'd be tasting leather for a whole month.

"Now, maybe I was being a little unfair. Fox is my star pupil. Could make a damn good general someday, once he wises up a bit. He's too cocky for his own damn good. But by God he can fight. Best fighter out of all of these girls!" 

Beside me, I felt Krypta tense up. Of course she would, though. He was slamming women left and right, and yet, there was one standing right in front of him. What a dumbass! I glared death at the Sergent before me.

"We're going to try this again. If you learn nothing else while you're here, Athene," he snarled. "You're going to learn that Zioners are ten times tougher than you pirates. Understood?" Still staring knives into his eyes, I nodded. He had said my name like it was a curse word, and now I was more irate than ever. I just hoped I didn't kill anyone. Well, anyone but Talder.

"Lock! Forward!" He shouted. Another boy came forward, but he didn't look like Fox. He actually looked apprehensive, and that made me feel good. He should be afraid. He should be wetting his pants right now, because I was going to tear him to tiny little shreds.

"GO!" The Sergeant shouted, and immediately I was kicking, punching, flipping my way to victory. I wasn't going to be embarrassed twice in a row.

And so I fought. And fought. And fought some more. I had stopped listening to the names two bruises, and a bloody nose ago, so now I was just trying to stop from getting more battered than the last guy had gotten me. I hadn't lost one fight, but of course, I faced many different levels of experience. Most of my injuries came from those that actually, as Talder had put it, knew just what the hell they were doing and had the strength to do it. Some I beat easily, and others were a perfect match for me. I even fought the girl, Krypta. She was good. Very good.

But not good enough.

I beat her in the end, but not by much. She nodded at me afterwards, but not in a remorseful way. She actually seemed proud of me. I'd definitely have to get to know this girl as soon as possible.

"Alright, enough for today. You've had your fun," Talder finally announced after I tripped a wiry, mousey-haired boy and left him lying on the ground. "Go to the Mess Hall and eat. Report to Training at 0400 hours." 

As one, the crowd pushed for the doors and down the hallway. I wanted to go with them since I didn't know where the Mess Hall was, but I waited till Krypta was in sight. Seeing she was several people in front of me, I jogged and jostled my way to her.

"You're really good," I said as soon as I was behind her shoulder.

"Thanks, but you beat me in the end, so I'm not that good," She responded with a wry smile. 

"So what's stuck up Talder's butt?" I asked, checking over my shoulder to make sure that Sergent Talder wasn't standing right behind me.

Krypta laughed. "Aw, he's always like that. What can I say? He's a Drill Sergeant, what do you expect?"

I nodded, not sure how to respond. After all, I had no clue what a Drill Sergeant was. "So, um, how did you learn all that?" Krypta asked. "I mean, I know you're homegrown, so you wouldn't have any plugs, but you were on that ship the whole time..."

"Well, I wouldn't say that part about the plugs..." I said, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" She asked, confused.

"I uh, I got a plug."

"No way."

"Yep."

"Show me."

"What, here? In front of all these people?"

"Yeah."

I looked both ways and then pressed myself against the far wall, and Krypta followed me. Turning so my back was to her, I lifted the hair off the back of my neck. 

"Holy shit!" I heard her say before I turned around. She had backed up away from me several feet and was staring in disbelief at me. "Is-I-I didn't even know that was impossible! Jesus Christ! And it's real?"

"Yeah," I said, sounding a bit ashamed.

"Jesus, Mary and Joseph," She whispered. "I didn't even think it was possible!"

"I guess it is, cause I have it."

"Whoa."

"Um, we should probably go eat," I said, getting uncomfortable really quickly and just wanting to leave."

Still not taking her eyes off of me, she nodded. "Yeah. Yeah, we should," She said before she walked down the hallway, still glancing over her shoulder at me as we walked for the Mess Hall.

Already, it was quite full. Long tables with benches attached filled the room, and all of the cadets sat at the tables. A station that distributed several mushy looking fruits and the traditional slop sat against a far wall, and we went to go get our nourishment.

Carrying it on metal trays, we were headed for the back of the room for a lone table that sat completely unoccupied. Sitting down, Krypta gave me a sad smile.

"Ah, my always reserved table."

"Why isn't anyone else sitting here?" I asked, taking a bite of the slop.

"Because it's my table. I always sit here."

"But how come no one else does?"

"Because I'm a girl."

I frowned.

"That hardly seems fair."

She snorted and took a bite of fruit. "Tell me about it."

A sudden presence at the end of the table made me turn around. It was Fox.

"Hey, look, I just want to apologize," He said, looking at me.

I turned away from him and back to my food. "Apologize for what? For being stronger than me?"

"Look, I didn't want to do that alright? I always do it, though. It's Talder's way of breaking the newbies in. He feeds everyone that crap on the first day."

"It seemed to me he had a little more fun with me than usual."

"Talder's a jag-off. Don't pay attention to him."

"Hmm. I thought you were his star pupil," I said, finally turning to look at him, my voice still poisonous. I was annoyed. I didn't want this guy around.

"Just because I am, doesn't mean I like it. We all hate him. It's not my fault. Look, I'm just trying to be nice, okay? I mean, you're Dad's the One, so..."

I winced at that and turned back to the food. He sat down across from me, jostling Krypta and making her scootch down. "I didn't mean it that way. I'm not just trying to get on your good side because your dad could kick my ass, although that is a major factor in all of this."

I gave a little fake laugh. "Ha ha ha. Very funny." 

"I'm sorry," He said, staring at me and making me look at him again.

"Apology accepted," I finally said before I could stop myself. Dammit! Why did I have to give in so easily?

He put out his hand. "My name's Fox. 'Course, you probably already knew that."

I took it and shook. "Athene."

"You were really good out there, Athene. How did you learn all that?"

"That's for me to know, and you to find out." 

He raised an eyebrow. "Mysterious little thing, aren't we?"

I looked up from my food once again, giving him an evil eye. I could swear I saw him back up a fraction of an inch.

"Who're you calling little?"

He raised his hands with the palms out. "My bad. Look, I gotta go. The boys are calling me back. I'll see you around, okay?" He got up and left for a table towards the front of the room. Figures.

Krypta moved back so she was directly across from me again. "Well. That was unusual."

I snorted again. "I was thinking more along the lines of 'uncomfortable', but I guess I've been feeling that ever since I got here."

She laughed. "I can imagine. People gawking at you wherever you go. All because of your genealogy. What's that like, though? To know that you're daddy is going to save the world?"

I swallowed and looked down at the table, having no idea how to respond. Krypta took my silence to mean that I was offended.

"Hey, look, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked you that. So, what do you think? About all this? Pretty amazing, huh?" 

"I guess so. I mean, at least you guys can move around in more than an outdated hovercraft."

She nodded. "That's right. You were on the Nebuchadnezzar, weren't you? Morpheus' ship? Yeah, everyone knows about that. You're the closest we've come to movie stars around here."

"I guess that's cool..." I said, not sure how to respond. 

She grinned. "C'mon! You don't think it's awesome that everyone around here knows your name?"

"Actually, I think it's a little creepy...I've never seen so many people..."

"Yeah, what's up with that? How come you never came in?"

"Well, because of the whole movie star issue. People kept flooding us and we never got any peace, but mostly it was because of the Legion. All of their scientist wanna-be flunkies kept taking my dad in for testing. Sine cloning is so advanced, they think they can take a gene from him and clone it, or implant it in other people, or something like that. That way, there'll be more people like him. More One's."

"I guess he wouldn't be the One anymore than, huh? He'd be like, the Two or the Forty-Second, or something like that," She said, laughing at her own joke. I gave a weak chuckle and continued in on my food.

She looked up at me, but then her gaze wandered over my shoulder. "Shit," She said, closing her eyes. When she opened them again, I saw they were a bright, bright green. With her chin-length, auburn hair, I was pretty sure she had some strong Irish blood in her. As if such a thing mattered anymore.

"What?" I asked.

"Almost 0400. We should get going."

Standing up, we dumped our trays, but along the way, we were catcalled by the boys lining the way up to the garbage disposal areas. Krypta rolled her eyes and kept walking at a steady pace, not even turning to look at them, shaking her head and sighing. I wasn't as strong. My face was burning and I kept looking at them as they taunted the rudest things at us. I walked faster to keep up with her.

"They're always like that. Honestly, it's as if they'd never seen a female before..."

"Well, um, you are the only one around..." I said, not even realizing that I had been justifying the fact that I was being taunted for my sex.

"So? You think that makes a difference? If Talder weren't so sexist, I think they'd at least have common decency. Jeez," She said, dumping her tray and then walking out, me still following behind her tall, surprisingly muscular frame.

In Training, we were met with a different man, Charge. Commander Charge was similar to Talder in many ways, but didn't pick on me as badly. He wasn't as biased towards the Zioners as Talder had been, and I was grateful for it. It was more of a living experience of what had been uploaded on that first day, leaning advanced techniques and more sparring. I had now sparred so much that I never wanted to fight in hand-to-hand combat ever again, but I would be very surprised if that never happened.

At the end of the day, I was so dirt tired I could barely make it back to the Barracks. Murdoc had already fallen asleep in the makeshift living room, slumped in a ratty armchair. I guess I closed the door to hard because he woke up as soon as I came in.

"Hey, Xena. What took you?" He asked, smiling. I half smiled and shook my head at the lame joke.

"Let's just say that Uploading is nothing compared to actual training," I said, giving a long tired sigh and falling into one of the chairs myself.

"Well no kidding. God, do you know how long these people must have to stay here just to learn three of the forms of combat we know? It's incredible. It makes me glad to have a plug."

"Don't let them here you say that, I swear. Drill Sergeant Talder will grill your ass for hours on just how 'strong, and powerful' the Zioners are compared to us 'pirates,'" I said, making bunny ears with my fingers. "Jeez, I just wanted to make him shut up!"

"I figured there must be some kind of racism still around. I figure the whole skin thing would have blown over years ago if the whole world were united in celebration and all that crap Morpheus said in the beginning, but there still has to be some kind of comparison that people fall back to. That would make the most sense. They probably think we're the village lepers," He said, snorting at the end in disgust and leaning back in the chair once more. I nodded. It all made sense.

"I don't want to go back. I hated it there."

"Yeah, but you gotta remember one thing, baby: they still think you're 'clean'," He said, an eyebrow raised and a smart-aleck look on his face. I thought the whole 'baby' comment was a little fresh, but I let it go. "They don't know you have a plug."

"One does. Krypta. She's the only other girl there, so instantly we formed a little alliance. I showed her though."

"Think you can trust her?"

"She was a little repulsed at first, but I think she's gotten over it."

He nodded. "Good. You don't want to get kicked out just because of some stupid little conflict of views."

"Yeah. I shouldn't show anybody else."

"Nope. Keep that skeleton in the closet, and throw away the key."

That whole sentence made no sense to me, but I nodded and pretended to understand anyway. I figured it had something to do with not saying anything.

"So there was only one other girl there?" he asked, sounding a little surprised.

"Well, you have to look at it this way," I started. "There were all boys there, but you can imagine why. Zion's building up her army. They want an impenetrable force when they finally confront the Machines out here, so of course, the leaders instinctively tell everyone that they have to send at least one male from their family to the Military. You can imagine how that builds up. Of course, everyone hates this law, but are too scared to do anything about it, so just shut up and keep shipping their boys out."

"Christ. It's like the draft," Murdoc murmured.

"Similar, yeah, only worse. Since most mothers want to hold on to the only people they know they can keep, the girls are usually kept at home. Of course, there's some female Zioners out there, but most are kept at home because Mama didn't want them to leave."

Murdoc leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. With one fist balled up and the other covering it, he rested his chin on top of his hands. He suddenly made a noise out of his nose that sounded like a remorseful laugh.

"I kept thinking things would be better now that we're in Zion," He said wistfully. "But really, I'm just finding out how seriously fucked up our world is. It makes me wonder why I didn't take the--"

"No," I said, interrupting him and grabbing his arm. "Don't even say it. That's what Cypher said. That's why half of our original crew is dead. Don't even think it, Murdoc," I said, staring deep into his eyes.

He swallowed while still staring at me. I pulled my hand away from his arm and leaned back again. He started to say something, but swallowed again before trying once more. "Who's Cypher?"

I took a deep breath before relaying everything I had known, about the original crew, about Cypher, about my father's discovery of his being The One. I was talking nonstop, I knew, and I could feel it getting later and later, but I didn't stop. I couldn't.

When I was finished, he nodded. "Jesus. It sounds like some kind of sci-fi movie I might have gone and seen when I was still in the Matrix." 

"Unfortunately, it's all real. It's not just a movie. It's reality. It's my life. And your life too."

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest. We sat like that for a while, just silent, mulling over the quite morbid statement I had just made.

"I should go to bed," Murdoc finally said, standing up.

"Yeah, it's late."

He started to walk across the room, but stopped. Slowly turning around, he looked at me again. I had been looking at the floor, but feeling his gaze on me once more made me slowly lift my eyes to him, then my head. He was walking towards me again, but not saying anything. I sat up straighter in my chair, confused.

Some small part of me knew what was happening. That could be the only explanation because suddenly my heart started thumping in my ribcage, and my stomach was doing the tango in my gut. He was standing right in front of me and bending at the waist, his face, no, his lips lowering towards mine.

And without knowing what I was doing, I reacted. We were kissing. I was kissing someone. It wasn't the big, gloppy kisses like in the movies where they look like chickens, pecking at one another. It was a gentle, slow, kiss. A sweet kiss that made me feel as if molten lava had suddenly replaced the blood in my veins and were coursing through my body. We didn't reach up to grab at the other's face with our hands. It was simple, and yet there all the same. 

It seemed to last longer than it really was because our lips parted so slowly. Only when I could feel air on my mouth once more did I open my eyes to find myself staring into his. 

"Good night," He whispered. He stood before me for a few moments more, a delay, before his inevitable departure. I was left alone in the common room, still trying to believe what had just happened, what really had just happened. I was breathing irregularly, but not in gasping breaths. I still felt flooded with warmth, and my heart was still palpitating in my chest. Slowly, I reached up two fingers and touched my lower lip. His had just been there not two minutes ago. And suddenly I grinned. I felt like laughing, and I did. A silent chuckling that only involved the expelling of air from my mouth. No sound. But it was laughing nonetheless.

'Well, Dad,' I thought.' Looks like your little plan worked after all...' 

***********

The gun barrel in my face. I could hear the magazine rolling in the machine as the Agent got ready to fire. Again with the chanting.

"Athene...Athene..." It somehow didn't seem as threatening this time. It felt...monotonous. It didn't strike as much fear as it normally did. I was expecting something. I knew I wouldn't die but how...

I woke up the next morning in the chair that I had sat in. I knew I had fallen asleep late, because when I woke up I was really groggy. Someone was shaking me violently, repeating my name over and over again. At first, I had a wild thought that it was the Agent.

"Athene, Athene, you gotta get up! They're waiting for you! C'mon, get up!"

I slowly opened my eyes. They were still glued shut with sleep and my vision was blurred. I could make out the slight disfigured image of Murdoc, shaking me by the shoulders and yelling at me.

"Wha--? Lemme sleep, Murdoc..." I murmured, turning over and curling into a ball in the chair away from him.

"Athene! You have to get down to the Center! Hurry!"

That got my attention.

I jerked up and quickly dashed across the room and out the door, not even bothering to say good-bye to Murdoc as I tore off in my half-buckled brown boots for the Center, knowing I was very, very late. 

When I arrived at the room, a huge group had already congregated there. Talder was booming in his loud voice and I went unnoticed. Slipping quietly into the crowd, I was almost home free. Gently easing the door back closed with my fingers, the metal suddenly slipped from my grasp, and banged back into place with a noise that reverberated through the room.

I gulped and winced as I felt every eye in the room turn on me. Oh, man was I dead.

"Ah, Athene. So glad you could join us," Talder said in a condescending tone. He started to walk towards me as the group of cadets parted before him to allow him to walk through, stopping when he was a few feet before me. Every eye was still staring.

"It looks like you have an ego problem, Miss Athene. You think that you're better than us, so you can just show up at any ol' time," he said, walking in circles around me. I balled my fists so tightly that my arms were shaking and my knuckles were white. I could feel my fingernails digging into the soft flesh of my palms, and I thought that if I pressed my teeth any harder, they would crush into calcium powder. 

"I don't think you should be let outside the compound any longer. It's too unpredictable. We don't know if you'll ever show up again. We have plenty of barracks, you know. Plenty of empty bunks..." he trailed off, thinking in one of those rare moments of his. 

"Yes. Yes, I think that's what I'll do. Athene, you are now an official cadet, which means all rules apply to you, especially punctuality! You will be assigned a uniform and a bunk. I'll have the order sent out today."

"No!" I cried out before I could stop myself. Talder froze in mid-circle around me, backtracking until he stood before me again. 

"What was that, cadet? Did you just question my authority?" he asked in a deadly soft voice.

I swallowed. The pig! The hideous, horrible, stupid pig! "No sir," I whispered in a strained, shaking voice. 

"Good. Now, to catch up for all you've lost, I want 50 push-ups. Now."

His back was to me once more as he strode back to the front of the room. I stood frozen in my place, glaring daggers at the back of his head. Once he reached his place at the front he turned around and saw me still standing defiantly in my place.

"NOW!" He roared. I dropped to the ground. After five, my arms were burning. Talder had been right. Uploading put muscle on your RSI, or residual self-image. In the real world, I was weak. 

That thought brought my anger up to newer heights.

After twenty, I thought my arms were going to fall off, but Talder kept watching me, making sure my nose touched the ground each time. He still gave the others things to do, but none of it was as laborious as my task. 

Finally, when I reached fifty, I dropped to my stomach and gasped in breath, never wanting to move again. My arms felt as if they were on fire, and were limp as noodles, while my chest burned from holding in a lot of air or so long. 

But my moment of rest didn't last long. As soon as I was down, Talder was over me once more, ordering me to my feet. I could barely stand up. Where was Krypta when I needed her?

"Running! Nine laps around the entire compound! Go!" Talder barked to the group. 

Every student was off, leaving me in the dust. I quick ran to catch up and hoped not to loose them, since I didn't know my way around at all.

Finally, I spotted a face I knew. Fox. I put on a burst of speed until I was at his side.

"Why does Talder hate me so much?" I panted out. I needed to vent, and Fox seemed like the best outlet after the way he trashed out Talder yesterday at lunch.

But if I expected commiseration from Fox, I was mistaken. The boy didn't even look at me before increasing his speed and getting several yards in front of me. I watched him with a mingled look of confusion, fury, and hurt. I was so taken aback that I tripped over my own feet, landing, yet again, flat on my face. My nose, which had just stopped bleeding last night, was now flowing freely once more. I ripped a strip of cloth off my sleeve and stuff it up my nose to stem the flow of the steady stream of blood that was pouring forth. But that was the best I could do. Somehow, I couldn't push myself back up.

Finally, I felt someone grabbing the back of my shirt. I groaned and squirmed away from the hand, but remained on the ground.

"Unless you want 150 more pushups I suggest you get up!" A voice hissed in my ear. It was Krypta.

I jumped up and gave a sigh of relief. "Krypta, thank God! Where were you?"

"I was towards the front of the group. Now, save your breath. You're going to need it. We're almost done with lap one."

"That's it?" I asked, disbelievingly. But that was all Krypta said to me for the rest of the run.

I don't know what kept me going, but something inside me just kept running and running. My chest felt as if knives had been slipped in between each rib, and my legs were seizing up, but I kept going. It wasn't as bad, though. Just having Krypta there was like a small dose of strength, a light spot on the dark horizon that was my future at the compound. 

After running it was lunch, another miserable affair. I was running purely on adrenaline, so I was exhausted, and too tired to be hungry: I only picked at my food. I wanted to put my head down and sleep and not have to feel anything anymore, but Krypta kept urging food into my body.

"C'mon, Athene. You gotta eat, or you'll feel even worse. Please, Athene, eat!" Krypta kept saying.

So I ate, though very little. After lunch, it was some martial arts training and then quite a lengthy class on firearms. These were much different than the guns I had been trained to use in Uploading. These guns were very high-tech, and used lasers. It made sense, though. The guns I learned how to use in Uploading were the guns used during the peak of the human existence. At dinner, I continued to eat very little.

More of the same followed dinner, but I was made to spar once more as I had the day before. When it was all over, I could barely follow behind Krypta to the cadet barracks. I wasn't paying attention to where we were going, and I knew I'd curse myself for that later on. 

The barracks turned out to be one huge room full of metallic bunk beds that were crammed into every place they could fit. The walkways weren't even a foot wide, and most people had to turn sideways just to go through to their bunk. I followed Krypta to her bed.

"You can have the bunk above mine," she said gently, reaching up and pulling down some things before dumping them on the floor. A boy walked up and then cried out an obscenity at the sight on the floor.

"What the hell are you doing?! Krypta, that's my stuff goddammit!" 

"Cool it, Spyder. Athene's sleeping here now."

"Says who?" He asked carefully, eyeing me up and down.

"Says me. You wanna make something of it, Spyder?" Krypta said menacingly. The boy narrowed his eyes at me, then at Krypta before walking off, muttering sullenly. Krypta shook her head and crawled back onto her bunk. I could hear her mutter something as well, and it sounded vaguely like "Boys!".

The door suddenly banged open. Talder stood in the doorway. Every mouth that had been moving was now closed or silent, frozen in mid-sentence, all with faces turned to look towards the sergeant.

"Showers are open!" He barked. "Remember, one minute showers only! If I catch any of you worthless little lowlife bastards taking more than your allotment, you'll be very sorry indeed..." He said, glancing around to look into each face. Several boys gulped. "Now go!" Talder shouted, and about five boys rushed past him, probably to do just that.

Then Talder started walking towards Krypta and me.

"So, Krypta, taken this one under your wing, have you?" He said sarcastically. Krypta said nothing. Talder turned towards me before throwing a great ball of cloth at me. "Your uniform," He said shortly before turning and leaving the room.

My uniform turned out to be a drab gray shirt with dark brown pants. On the shirt was a number, stamped just below the left shoulder. '**ZC42187**' it read. 

I looked like a prison inmate, which is exactly how I felt.

I stalled having to change into the new clothes for as long as possible. My red sweater had been my most prized possession, and now I'd have to surrender it to these plain clothes.

I didn't realize just how long I'd sat, staring at the shirt until I felt a hand on my arm. 

"It's our turn for showers," Krypta said gently, and I put the uniform on my top bunk before following Krypta out of the room.

We went down a long hallway that looked like the one I went down in detox, when we came to a set of double doors. Krypta pushed them open and held them there for me.

It was a big, dirty white room encased in tile. I imagine that the tile had once been white in an effort to look sterile and industrialized, but now it was yellow and dirty from use and age. Showerheads lined the walls and small spigots -- one to each showerhead -- were located beneath each. Krypta had already started to undress, and I did so as well before turning the spigot.

The one handle there let out water than came in only one temperature: lukewarm. I shivered as the almost-warm-almost-cold water hit my bare skin. I just stood under the flow of water, letting it pour over my exhausted, hot body and cooled me down like a blessing.

But it was too short. Just as the water was starting to feel warm, the water shut off. Krypta didn't even seem to mind, just picked up a towel, or rather, a rag, from a huge rack and toweled off. I got one as well and dried myself off before crawling into my clothes once more. I kept the towel wrapped around the ends of my hair. Unlike Krypta, who had also cut her hair short, my hair took much longer to dry, and I hated wet clothing.

We walked back to the barracks and as we entered I saw that every head was already wet. We had been the last people to shower.

Despite my efforts to keep my Neb clothing dry, it didn't matter. The sopping ends of my thick black hair had already soaked through the thin rag and now left wet spots all over my shirt. I felt like crying.

"There, there," Krypta said, pushing gently on my shoulder to tell me to sit down on her bed once more. "It's okay. You gotta put on your uniform now anyway," She continued, reaching above her head and pulling down the ball of cloth from my bed once more. I merely looked at her. We were surrounded by boys! No way was I going to expose myself like that.

Krypta must have read my mind. Again, she reached up to my bunk, but this time pulled down a blanket. "Here. I'll shield you with this," she said, stretching the blanket from one hand across her chest, into the other and then stood before me, blocking the others from view. As she did, a few silent "Oh man"s and "Damn"s could be heard nearby. Reluctantly, I changed into my new clothes.

The pants were soft and well worn, but the shirt was stiff and uncomfortable. I'd have to wear it in.

When I gave the word, Krypta took the blanket down and then put it back. She must have seen how upset I was, because the next thing I knew she had enveloped me in a big hug. "It'll be okay, Athene. It'll be okay," she murmured. I had never had a sister, but I imagine this is what it would be like

"I never even got to say good bye..." I whispered, trying to fight back the tears. 

"I know, I know..."

I sniffed and then pulled back, grabbing my hair in my fist and pulling it over my shoulder. "My hair. It's still wet," I said in an effort to change the subject. 

"Turn around. I'll take care of it," She said, and I did just that. Taking my hair in her hands she started to work with it.

"I've been here for six years, and I'll tell you, it's tough. But you get used to it. Especially to Talder. You learn what a cocky asshole he is quick enough, and you deal with it. I remember the first day I came here--ha! Made me cry myself to sleep, I was so miserable. But there were a lot more women in the compound then, and they helped me through it," she said, all the wall continuing to work with my hair.

"How old are you, anyway?" I asked.

"Seventeen, next month," she announced happily.

"You mean you've been here since you were eleven?" I exclaimed incredulously.

"Well, I couldn't rightly go living in the orphanage my whole life, could I?" She asked with a small laugh.

"You're an orphan?" I asked, this time in a quieter voice.

"Aye," She said, confirming my suspicions of her being perhaps Irish or Scottish. Somewhere in the Marine West Coast region. "Most cadets here are. Zion doesn't want us living off of their charity our whole lives, so if you're an in an orphanage still by age eleven, off they ship you to here where they make a soldier out of you. It becomes your new home." Finally, her hands left my head. "There. Braided and all. That should keep the hair off of your shoulders."

I reached up behind me and felt the hair. My hair was thick enough to make the braid wide enough to cover the plug that still rested in my neck. I suddenly realized this is how I always wore my hair in the Matrix. I suddenly grinned.

"C-could you teach me how to braid?" I asked, turning around to face her.

She grinned back at me. "Of course! Here, do what I do."

So that night, despite the misery and pain, I not only learned how to braid, but I had finally made a true friend.

************

My next few weeks at the compound ran together like the goop that I ate every day. Talder's orders became harder and more difficult, but I was rapidly becoming stronger. The so-called "punishments" were less strenuous for me. I still loathed them with every fiber of my being, but it wasn't as bad as before. 

Slowly, I was earning back the respect I deserved. I was no longer a weakling, and I no longer let Talder get under my skin. I still thought he was a pompous asshole, but I refused to let him get to me.

Krypta and I became much closer, and I sometimes thought she really was my sister that I never had. On the nights when my longing for my parents, Morpheus, but mostly Murdoc, put me to tears, she would silently beckon me down to her bunk and would sing me a song. It was in a foreign language. It was a Celtic tune, and it soothed my nerves and helped me to sleep better, and something about the silence that followed after this little lullaby told me that it helped the other boys as well. Just as I was waiting to go to my home, so too, were they. Or, if they were orphans like Krypta, they were dreaming about a home they'd never see.

I didn't realize it, but I was quickly closing ranks between Fox and myself. When it came to sparring, I was still second best, but now I was quickly becoming second best in everything else as well. Finally, the day for the final test came.

"Sparring!" Talder bellowed. "Athene! Fox!"

I froze. Not yet had I forgotten my first match against him. I still had yet to forget the humiliation I had dealt with that day. Even now, I was glad my father wasn't there to witness that. The shame that I imagine I would have seen in his eyes...I couldn't think about that now. Without command, my legs were robotically carrying me to the front of the room. Fox was approaching from the other side of the room and we both met in the middle, right in front of Talder.

"Bow!" Talder barked, and we did just that. We bowed equally low, but kept our faces upturned, always keeping eye contact with the other.

"Ready!" Talder shouted again, and I moved into a right kicking stance, my legs apart and knees bent, hands curled into fists that were located in front of my mouth, and right beside it. 

"Fight!" was Talder's final command, but the minute the first syllable was out, I was in the air, placing a fast, well aimed spinning heel kick right in Fox's chest. He was so taken by surprise that I was able to put in a few good punches and uppercuts. But it didn't take long for him to get his bearing back, because before long I too, was getting my share of pain. He managed to get in a few roundhouses that caught me in my back and knocked some of the wind from my lungs. I threw a jab aimed for his face, but he caught my fist in his hand just as he had done on the first day, and twisted it around so my back was against him. I kicked my leg over my head so that he got a face full of my foot. Several cheers when up from the crowd. 

Now Fox was mad. This was no longer a fight for victory, it was a fight for reputations.

The kick worked, since he grunted and backed up, and as he did so he threw out a hook. It was a weak one, as he was still reeling from the kick, so I took advantage of it. Inside-to-outside block, left jab, right knife-hand right below his armpit, spin around, left spear-hand to the same place, wrap arm around his still outstretched one, kick leg out from under him, tripping him to the ground. I fell to my knees in a kneeling position, but my fist was coming down as well, and I stopped it bare centimeters from his face, letting out a cry of victory. He was pinned.

I had won.

A strange silence had settled over the room. I was still knelt over Fox, my fist still hovering mere centimeters from his face. He was staring up at me with big, aqua eyes, his dark hair matted over his head with sweat. A hint of rage lingered in his gaze, but mostly, it was filled with surprise. 

I got up and held a hand down to him. He grasped my wrist and I helped pull him to his feet. Still, not a sound came from anyone.

We bowed to each other once more before going back to join the group of cadets. I made sure the braid was still in place and securely shielded the plug from view. When I looked up again, I saw Talder was staring at me with a funny look on his face. It gave me an uneasy feeling in my stomach.

"Dismissed!" the man yelled, still giving me that funny look.

"But sir, we still have--" someone protested, but Talder cut him off. 

"I said _dismissed_!" he barked, still not taking his eyes from me. We all shuffled from the room.

I was getting a lot more funny looks, but they weren't as disconcerting as the Sergeant's had been. Theirs were big eyes filled with surprise and awe. Fox was no where in sight. A wild image of him in the barracks, crying his eyes out flashed into my mind.

I suddenly grinned at the thought. Whoever said revenge was as sweet as nectar was a wise man indeed.

The rest of the day was even more of a blur than usual, only punctured by several of the boys giving me nervous, stuttered congratulations. I was starting to feel like the celebrity that everyone kept telling me that I was.

That night I fell asleep smiling.

****************

My day of good things was a misgiving, because the next day, my life was ruined.

It started out fine enough. I woke up, ate the slop they call breakfast, and then went to "Torture Time" with Sergeant Talder, but the cruel man had other means of torture in mind. 

He was testing endurance, or at least that's what I thought. We were made to line up, shoulder to shoulder, and stand at attention until Talder told me to stop. 

So we did. My knees were becoming numb with strain. They were shaking with the effort of putting my weight on them for such a long time. Talder was circling around us like a shark. Now, he was walking along behind us when his footsteps suddenly stopped.

I tried to see behind me by moving my eyes to the furthest corner but I couldn't see him. There was suddenly a loud _snip_ noise and my head suddenly felt light. Then a shout rang out from directly behind me, making me jump about a foot into the air.

"I _knew_ there was something wrong with you! Lock will have to believe me this time!" Talder cried, grabbing me by my arm and dragging me off. Since I was already moving, I felt for my braid.

It was gone.

My hand was groping for the black rope that was my braided hair, but all I could grab was air, and all I got was a sharp shock of pain when my hand hit the plug, which was now exposed for all to see. The loud snipping noise must have been Talder cutting the braid off.

I was pulled roughly along down many a hallway, stumbling along in an effort to keep up to Talder's long, brisk strides. Suddenly I realized where I was. The nice carpeting and shined up metal walls suddenly jolted a memory in my mind. A meeting. Shouting.

Morpheus. My parents. 

I was being taken to the Council Room.

I was being taken to see the Legion. For one of the few times in my life, I let a curse slip. 

"Shit," I muttered.

Talder pushed open the oak doors while still managing to keep a firm grip on my arm. A council of eleven people sat at a long, polished, oak table. The walls were a soft yellow, almost off-white. The floor was carpeted, but dirty. Still, the carpeting was something rarely seen anywhere. Wood was a precious commodity, yet here they were, encased in it.

"You wanted proof, Lock? Well, here it is! Proof!" Talder said, his voice giddy and full of vicious pride. He threw my arm from his grasp, propelling me forward several feet and making me trip.

The man in the middle of the table stared down at me. "What are you talking about Sergeant Talder? This is Neo and Trinity's daughter. What is she proof of?"

"That Captain Morpheus and his crew are illegally implanting prosthetics that were banned years ago!" He crowed, grabbing me again and spinning me around. "Look!" He cried, and I imagined he was pointing to my plug.

A silence settled over the room. Why did I always seem to have that effect on people? Finally, the voice from before spoke again.

"Send word to the captain and his crew that I must speak with them. Immediately." The voice sounded tired and exhausted. I could hear rustling behind me before someone finally came into my range of vision once more and left the room.

"Let go of her, Talder. She is not a prisoner," the same voice said.

"She fights, sir. I don't want to risk the chance--"

"I said, _let her go_," the voice said again, this time with much more force. Reluctantly, the sergeant released my arm from his grip. 

I turned around so that I was now facing a panel of ten people. A chair two down from the left was empty. Men mostly dominated the panel, but there were about two or three women as well. The man who spoke when I entered was still in the very middle. I assumed he was Lock.

No one said a word until the door opened once more and this time the entire crew of the Nebuchadnezzar was with him, including Tank and Doc. I ran to meet my parents, to hug my father, but I met his eyes before I reached him, and he gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head. I stopped where I was and merely smiled at the rest of them. It was probably the hardest thing in the world not to run and envelop myself in Murdoc's arms the minute he entered the room, but instead I had settle for a warm smile. We all turned to face the panel. 

Lock was staring hard at Morpheus, his eyes still tired, with dark bags under his eyes. "Captain Morpheus, of the Nebuchadnezzar, do you admit to administering prosthetics to non Matrix-born members of your crew?"

At that moment, Morpheus became more of my hero that ever. There I stood, shaking like a leaf, wishing Murdoc would hold me and just make it all better, yet Morpheus stood there, tall and proud, looking Lock straight in the eye, his head held high.

"Yes," he said in his deep baritone, and every eye that belonged to a member of the Neb closed in condemnation. We knew the worst was coming now.

"Are you also aware that this practice has been outlawed for the past sixteen years?" Lock's voice was now pleading, as if hoping Morpheus would stop doing this to his crew. 

"Yes," Morpheus replied again, but this time his voice was slightly halting. Lock gave a deep sigh that heaved his shoulders up and down. He folded his hands together and leaned them on the table, and Lock looked down at his hands. "You realize what this means, Morpheus," he said in a quiet voice.

Again, Morpheus said, "Yes."

Lock gave another sigh before looking down both sides of the table at his comrades. They all gave a slight nod of their heads, but their eyes didn't hold the sadness that Lock's did. Theirs held a look of savage triumph, similar Talder's, who stood off to the side in the corner. I looked over at him, and saw him checking out my dad. He now had an apprehensive look on his face, realizing that we were angry, and had lots of firepower.

"Captain Morpheus of the Nebuchadnezzar, you have violated Section 16 of the Code of Conduct for the City of Zion. Your ship will now be revoked, as will your crew--"

"You can't do that!" my mother suddenly shouted, stepping forward. She had been hanging almost directly behind Morpheus, since she was ranking officer and this was as much her fault as it was his, but now she was front and center, and her crystal blue eyes were blazing. 

"Commander Trinity, I suggest you step back immediately before my sentence becomes more severe," Lock said, his voice severe.

"Sir, I believe I should have a say in this," my father said, his voice almost as stern as Lock's. "I am the One, after all."

A dead silence fell over the room at this. This was the first time I'd ever heard my father flaunt the fact that he was the One. Actually, when I thought about it, it was the first time I'd ever heard him actually admit that he was the One.

Lock's Adam's Apple bounced as he swallowed hard. "Neo, though we acknowledge the fact that you are the One, this is a matter for the Legion to decide, not y--"

"I think you all know of the events that lead up to my discovering my powers. You all know the connection between Trinity, Morpheus, and myself. If you take Morpheus' ship and his crew, you will also loose us as warriors." My father's voice had taken on a dangerous tone, and I stared at him. If I hadn't been thinking, I probably would have had my mouth hanging open. He'd never been this forceful over anything. Personally, I kind of liked this new taking-charge persona.

Lock's face suddenly took on an uneasy look. Again, he looked down both ends of the table. "You'll please excuse us, while we discuss this," he said, but his tone of voice suggested no room for argument. My mother and father merely stepped back into the group. Carmen and Notton were giving each other uneasy looks, and when I looked down, I saw their hands were intertwined. That made me smile a little bit. 

Looking over at my parents, I saw that my father had snaked his arm around my mother's waist. She still looked angry enough to kill. Morpheus continued to hold his head high. He looked the least unfazed of us all. Murdoc was casting me a worried glance, and I caught his gaze. It's going to be okay, I tried to tell him with my eyes. He nodded slightly before turning back to the Legion. They had stopped discussing and were returning to their seats.

"After much deliberation, we have decided that our decision to revoke Captain Morpheus' ship, the Nebuchadnezzar, will remain." My heart fell, but I strained to listen to what their verdict on the crew would be. The room was so deathly silent that you could hear a trace running. "However, we have also decided that our decision to revoke Captain Morpheus' crew will be waved." I suddenly realized that I'd been holding my breath, because when I finally breathed again it was in deep gasps of air. I was smiling and the tension eased in the room. "Also, it has been decided that Athene will remain at the Center for further training."

It was like some cruel joke. My smile instantly faded, replaced with only sheer horror. Now that Talder knew I had a plug, he was going to make my life a living hell.

"But I've already been Uploaded! I know every--" I burst out.

"We still feel that your place will be at the Center," Lock said, holding up his hand to silence me. My mouth was left hanging open and I was staring at Lock in disbelief. I chanced a glance over at Talder, and unsurprisingly found him smiling that ugly smug smile of his. Now I knew for sure I was in for it.

"Please return to your stations, and Athene, you will be escorted back to the center." The rock that had formed in the pit of my stomach grew heavier and I was starting to find it difficult to breathe. 

We all turned away from the council once more and headed out the door. Murdoc walked out next to me and suddenly I felt his hand around mine. He gave it a squeeze before turning and walking away. When I turned to look at him, his back was already to me and he was almost around the corner. 

I followed another one of the graduated Cadets back to the Center. I dragged my feet, my face to the floor. The Neb...it was gone. My home, my only way out of here, my only ticket to happiness...gone. We'd never have it back. Ships cost fortunes nowadays, which is why there were so few pirates. It was hopeless...

When I appeared back at the Center, it was dinnertime. When I entered the room, silence settled over everything. Every eye was staring at me, and I felt like, as Murdoc put it, "the village leper." I nervously reached up my hands to fiddle with my braid, but then realized I no longer had one. My hair was now as short as my mothers, and more roughly styled. I probably looked hideous. Soft murmurs behind me as they all got an eyefull of my plug. The rock got heavier. 

I immediately went to Krypta's table at the back where she was already hunched over her food. She seemed to be avoiding my gaze. In fact, she didn't even talk to me. The rest of my day was spent in isolated silence. Everyone tried to maintain a two-foot space between them and I, including Krypta. My life was ruined. 

That night, Krypta's gentle lullaby was stifled. She was silent, the only sounds being that of the boys that snored. I cried myself to sleep. 

*********************

Thanks to everybody who helped keep this alive. Sorry about the delay, and about the depressing ending. Hope you enjoyed this!


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